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COMMUNITY
Sports Complex
Globall-ization: How the War of Words Hurts Gay Jocks
Jim Provenzano | May 11, 2004
Major league hockey is in trouble. Between St. Louis Blues forward Mike
Danton's April arrest for a bizarre murder-for-hire plot, and the Canucks'
Todd Bertuzzi's March assault on Colorado Avalanche forward Steve Moore, the
sport sometimes proves the worst of its violent stereotypes.
But amateur gay leagues thrive in the United States and Canada with no such
incidents. In fact, a few romances have even blossomed between players.
"There isn't anything we're afraid of, which is why [the sport is] growing
so quickly," says Jeff Kagan, Commissioner of the International Gay &
Lesbian Ice Hockey Association (IGLIHA). Kagan also founded New York City's
gay hockey league and plays on one of its teams, the Pucks. "It's the thrill
and excitement of the game and the camaraderie that really empowers us as
individuals and as a team," he says.
Which players might be gay or lesbian may be a moot point, since it's
difficult to tell who's male or female under the bulky uniforms. Players can
spend upwards of $1,000 on new equipment. Finding used equipment cuts costs.
But for devoted players, either way, it's worth it.
Jeffrey Higgins, President of Boston Pride Hockey and a member of the
Lasers, has been playing for 23 years, since he was 5 years old.
After a 12-year growth in the sport, Boston now boasts more than 75 players
on two teams. Both play in competitive divisions in the New England Senior
Hockey League. The lower division Lobsters are known for their unofficial
mascot, a cluster of inflatable crustaceans.
Both teams include straight men and women, gays, lesbians, and a few
transgenders. Yet "the physical aspect of the game is very much there," says
Higgins. "The no-check rule is to bar heavy hitting. After all, we all have
to work the next morning."
Higgins says assaults in the pros "give hockey a more brutal appearance than
it really has. It is a physical, and at times rough, sport." Checking
players because they're gay is extremely rare, Higgins says. "We certainly
hold our own. Despite a few errant comments from time to time, we're treated
as any other opponent on the ice."
Michelle Mateychuk, who captains the Oakland B-division of the San Francisco
Quakes, plays regularly as part of the Bay Area's only two gay teams, which
travel to regional tournaments. The Quakes took gold in their division at
Sydney's Games.
"Typically, we go to the Los Angeles tournament over Labor Day Weekend and
the Vancouver tournament Easter weekend," says Mateychuk, whose on-ice
concerns are more about her diminutive size than the attitudes of opponents.
Paul O'Kane of Toronto, correspondence secretary for IGLIHA, says his sport
has grown from about 10 teams in 1996 to almost 50 teams throughout North
America. He credits the Internet with increasing communication and
visibility for GLBT hockey.
"GLBT hockey has certainly transformed my life dramatically," says O'Kane,
who started playing in 1995 in Toronto's Gay Hockey Association. "I quickly
found my family and became involved in many aspects of the league."
While coordinating Toronto tournaments, O'Kane met his current partner, who
was a visiting hockey player from San Francisco. An extended visit led to
more romance and, of course, more hockey.
"We played at the Oakland Ice Center on straight teams, all of whom knew we
were gay," says O'Kane. "We also coached the Oakland pee-wee team, one of
the most rewarding experiences in my life." After returning to the East
Coast, O'Kane and his partner became "civil unioned" in 2000, in front of
friends and family.
But there may be no love lost when hockey teams have to choose between Gay
Games VII in Chicago or Montreal's Rendez-Vous, both scheduled for summer
2006. The widely covered dispute between the Federation of Gay Games (FGG)
and Montreal is particularly difficult for ice hockey. Should Canadian teams
not attend Gay Games VII, U.S. teams will miss an opportunity to challenge
their fiercest competitors.
O'Kane says, "I don't believe much good will come of the split now tearing
through the GLBT sports community."
To make matters worse, IGLIHA is no longer a member of the Federation. Last
year, it missed the filing deadline for membership renewal, due to internal
restructuring. The request to extend the filing deadline was voted down and
their membership revoked.
"Our primary objective will be to explore how GLBT hockey players could be
better served, working with the Federation to promote their events to our
membership," says O'Kane. "IGLIHA has its roots entrenched in North America.
Our focus in 2006 will be to keep the gay hockey community together, united
and strong."
O'Kane remains hopeful. "Hockey players are crazy for hockey and will
generally surpass any obstacle to play," he says. "I don't foresee any
shortage of hockey players in Chicago or Montreal."
Jim Provenzano is the author of the novels PINS and Monkey Suits. Read more sports articles at www.sportscomplex.org
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A cool moment from the gold-medal match at Gay Games VI
in Sydney in 2002.