First gay sports festival shows changing Nepal attitudes
Clad in pink, blue and yellow clothes, more than 250 lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) athletes took part in a sports festival in the Nepali capital, Kathmandu, at the weekend, billed by organisers as the first in South Asia.
About 1,500 spectators cheered as the athletes, waving rainbow coloured flags, marched at the Dasharath Stadium in the heart of Kathmandu in the opening ceremony of the three-day event that showed how attitudes are changing, albeit slowly, in the conservative, Hindu-majority nation.
The athletes were accompanied by masked dancers and Panche baja – musicians playing Nepal’s traditional instruments including pipes and drums.
“After I participated in the tournament, my confidence has increased,” said 29-year-old Bakti Shah, who took part in football and athletics.
American Olympic diving champion Greg Louganis, on a visit to Nepal to support the rights of sexual minorities, kicked off the event at a football match, wearing a Nepali cloth cap and cream-coloured Buddhist prayer scarf.
