Amsterdam to host 2018 international gay rugby cup

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The Amsterdam Lowlanders

The Amsterdam Lowlanders

The 2018 Bingham Cup, known as the “gay rugby world cup”, will be hosted by the city of Amsterdam. And SA’s own Jozi Cats plan to be there!

To be held in June 2018, this will be the first Bingham Cup to be played in continental Europe. The Amsterdam Lowlanders beat out host bids from teams in three other cities; Edinburgh, London and Toronto.

Each of the bids satisfied significant bid requirements, with support from governments, community groups and local and national rugby unions, said International Gay Rugby (IGR).

“The quality of all four bids was exceptional, meeting high expectations that the Bingham Cup tournament [will] provide for excellent rugby and showcase the importance of diversity and inclusion in sport,” commented IGR Chairman, Andrew Purchas.

According to Marc-Paul Stufkens, Chairman of the Amsterdam Lowlanders’ bid committee, the bid was fully endorsed by Rugby Netherlands, the Dutch national rugby union.

“It is fantastic that the Bingham Cup is coming to Amsterdam in 2018,” said Stufkens. “The Bingham Cup will no doubt give rugby in the Netherlands and beyond a huge boost and help tackle homophobia in sports.”

South Africa’s recently launched Jozi Cats gay rugby club is planning to take part in the Bingham Cup for the first time through the Amsterdam edition.

The club’s chairperson, Teveshan Kuni, told Mambaonline that the club also aims to bid to host the 2020 cup and believes that participating in Amsterdam 2018 will help them to do so. “We have to experience a tournament to understand the organisation and coordination needed,” he explained.

Bingham Cup is now one of the largest 15-a-side rugby tournaments in the world. It has been previously hosted in San Francisco (2002), London (2004), New York (2006), Dublin (2008), Minneapolis (2010), Manchester (2012), Sydney (2014) and in May this year in Nashville.

The competition, which aims to challenge stereotypes and perceptions of gay men, is named in honour of Mark Bingham, a member of the San Francisco gay rugby union team who died on United Airlines Flight 93 on September 11, 2001. It’s believed Mark was one of the passengers who tackled the terrorists on board, preventing the aircraft from reaching the hijackers’ intended target.

Watch the Amsterdam Lowlanders bid video below.

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