The Guadalajara Gay Games 2023 get underway with the first sporting events held on Friday, November 3, followed by an opening ceremony (7 p.m., doors open 6 p.m.) the following day at the Aquatics Center located next to the Parque Metropolitano in Zapopan.
The ceremony will feature the Jalisco State Choir, the Jalisco Ballet and the Escuela de Artes, plus a special presentation by famous drag queen Valentina.
Staging the Gay Games—held this year in conjunction with Hong Kong after being postponed in 2022—is a major coup for Guadalajara and Jalisco, whose governments are making great strides in promoting diversity in the region. This will be the first occasion the event has been held in Latin America, as well as Asia.
Around 4,000 athletes and 6,000 companions from as many as 50 nations are expected to attend the event, pushing the city’s hotel occupation level above 75 percent. Almost half will come from the United States and Canada, 25 percent from Europe, 15 percent from Mexico and Latin America and the remainder from the rest of the world, organizers say.
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