Toronto group aiming to make Pan Am Games inclusive

"We wanted to do something just as great or better (than the Vancouver Games PrideHouse)," said PHTO spokesperson Ryan Tollofson. "We wanted a safe space where people could come and celebrate LGBTQ inclusiveness and celebrate the athletes."

PHTO will include a pavilion at the 519 where people can gather to watch the games, art installations, and casual sports games breaking out at intersections in the area.

"We’ll also have pavilions at Nathan Phillips Square and the CNE, plus 16 ambassadors across the province - mostly in the GTA - to do outreach," Tollofson said.

With funding from the City of Toronto, the province of Ontario and CIBC, PHTO aims to provide something for fans of every stripe.

Pan Am Games CEO Saad Raffi said the inclusion of PHTO would help ensure the event is as inclusive as possible.

"Inclusion and diversity in sports is something Canadians have shown leadership in and we want that to continue," he said. "It’s important to get the message (of inclusiveness) across to people coming from across the Americas to this region."

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Raffi added that, in this way, the Toronto 2015 Games can be more than a celebrated sporting event.

"We hope to use sport as a catalyst for social inclusion," he said. "Through sports, arts and culture, we want to help people understand that we may have differences, but we’re all struggling with the same issues."

"While the Games themselves are vitally important, they’re also a catalyst for discussions we have to have."

Former Olympic gymnast Kristan Burley, who represented Canada at the 1996 Atlanta Games, welcomed the opening of the new space at a launch event on Friday, Nov. 28. He noted that sports are not known for being inclusive, and he himself did not come out as a queer athlete until he retired from the sport.

"At that time, LGBTQ issues weren’t something you openly talked about," he said. "It’s a North American concept that guys who do gymnastics are gay because we wear tight uniforms, do something artistic and can do the splits. Everywhere else in the world, that concept isn’t there."

He said he - like many athletes across the sporting spectrum - was not comfortable sharing his sexual orientation for a variety of reasons. Among them is the fact that many judges in gymnastics hail from countries where LGBTQ rights are virtually nonexistent.

"Hearing the comments from a gymnast from Greece who came out after dominating at the ‘96 Games, the international persecution was horrible," Burley said. "It’s a judged sport and that ruined his reputation. He never had anywhere near the same success again."

Burley, who lives downtown, said it can be draining for athletes to feel forced to hide a huge part of who they are. That, in turn, detracts focus from their training, their sport and their team.

"To be on any Olympic team takes every ounce of your focus and your ability," he said. "To be your best, you have to be able to be yourself. Things are better now, but sports always seem to be behind in these things."

He hopes PHTO helps change that atmosphere for athletes and supporters at the Toronto 2015 Games.

"It’s important because it shows the LGBTQ part of the greater community indulges in sport and are among the best," he said.

For more information about PHTO and its initiatives throughout the Toronto 2015 Games, visit www.pridehouseto.ca