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==Organization== The games were organized by Chicago Games Inc. Due to the change in host cities, the games were planned in only a one-and-a-half year period. The host committee encountered some difficulty in securing a rowing venue in suburban [[Crystal Lake, Illinois]]. There was local opposition to the prospect of the community hosting the LGBTQ sporting event. As a result, the suburb's park board rejected the host committees application to host their rowing competitions in the village. However, a week after rejecting the proposal, the park board reversed their decision in a 3-2 vote, granted the Chicago Games Inc. approval to host their rowing competitions in Crystal Lake.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Place |first1=Greg |last2=Schmidt |first2=Shawn |title=Good Business. Good Policy: The Economic Impact of Hosting GLBT Sporting Events |journal=Parks & Recreation |date= 2012 |volume=47 |issue=2}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Long |first=J. |date=2006 |title=Gay Games tests suburb: debate is an event for Crystal Lake |work=Chicago Tribune |location=Chicago }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Wooten |first=A. |date=March 8, 2006 |title=Crystal Lake rowing clears hurdle |work=Windy City Times |location=Chicago }}</ref> ===Finances=== The 2006 Gay Games, which were attended by an estimated 150,000 spectators and featured over 12,000 athletic and cultural participants, became the first edition of the Gay Games in over 20 years to turn a profit. The Chicago Games organizers managed to break even and create a meager profit. In contrast, the Montreal OutGames reportedly lost US$4 million. The financial success of the Chicago games was announced a year after the close of the games. According to Kevin Boyer, the co-vice chair of Chicago Games Inc., the final total cash budget of the 2006 games was slightly over US$9 million. He reported that there were an additional, "$13.2 million in barter and in-kind sponsorships which included, among other categories, media and marketing ($7.2 million), legal service, cash handling, technology consulting, and waived facility rentals." The state of Illinois provided a 1.4% of the cash budget through a $125,000 tourism grant. CGI managed to fill a budget gap of approximately $300,000 (3% of the cash budget). According to Boyer, this was accomplished, "with additional fundraising from donors and sponsors, especially longtime Gay Games competitors and supporters Dick Uyvari and Joe LaPat, as well as negotiated reductions in expenses with some of our vendors." Boyer added that CGI, "also continued to aggressively pursue post-Gay Games revenue from DVD, photo, and merchandise sales as well as the sale of hard assets such as furniture, technology, and equipment."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ontopmag.com/mobile/article.aspx?Id=3469|title=Three Cities Bid For Gay Games 2014|author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|date=March 18, 2009|website=www.ontopmag.com|publisher=On Top Magazine|accessdate=November 24, 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831035624/http://www.ontopmag.com/article/3469/Three_Cities_Bid_For_Gay_Games_2014 |archive-date=August 31, 2018}}</ref><ref name="Brigham">{{cite news|url=http://ebar.com/blogs/2006-gay-games-breaks-even/|last=Brigham|first=Roger|title=2006 Gay Games breaks even|date=July 11, 2007|newspaper=[[Bay Area Reporter]]|accessdate=September 3, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150922023731/http://ebar.com/blogs/2006-gay-games-breaks-even/|archive-date=2015-09-22|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name=success>{{cite web|url=http://chicago.gopride.com/news/article.cfm/articleid/4708201 |title=Chicago's 2006 Gay Games Declared a Financial Success |date=July 10, 2007 |website=chicago.gopride.com |accessdate=September 3, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160116112902/http://chicago.gopride.com/news/article.cfm/articleid/4708201 |archive-date=January 16, 2016 }}</ref> Seven months prior to the opening of the games, organizers had already secured 6,000 paid registrants and accumulated the first pre-Games financial surplus in the history of the Gay Games.<ref name=gotgames>{{cite news |last=Fitzgerald |first=Mark |date=February 2006 |title=Chicago publisher has 'got Games' this July |work=Editor & Publisher }}</ref> ===Travel=== The U.S. is one of the few countries in the world to deny entry to visitors infected with [[HIV]], a condition which causes [[AIDS]]. The Federal government ruled that non-United States citizens with HIV or AIDS would be allowed to travel to attend the Gay Games in Chicago. The provision of such a waiver had the support of [[Mayor of Chicago|Chicago's Mayor]] [[Richard M. Daley]] and Illinois-elected [[US House of Representatives|Representative]] [[Jan Schakowsky]]. Waivers for travel restrictions regularly have been provided for events such as the [[Olympics]] and international conferences. The previous Gay Games in the United States, the [[1994 Gay Games]], received a similar waiver from then-[[President of the United States|President]] [[Bill Clinton]].<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Agrees to waive HIV/AIDS travel rule |url=http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2006-02-07/business/0602070163_1_gay-games-hiv-or-aids-human-immunodeficiency-virus |newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]] |location=[[Chicago]] |date=February 7, 2006 |access-date=November 9, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304095810/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2006-02-07/business/0602070163_1_gay-games-hiv-or-aids-human-immunodeficiency-virus |archive-date=March 4, 2016 }}</ref>
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