President Barack Obama on Saturday made
a video appearance to help open the 2014 Gay Games 9.
Thousands of athletes and fans
converged Saturday on Cleveland for the games' opening ceremonies
held at The Q.
Cleveland and nearby Akron will over
the next week play host to the sports and cultural festival.
Appearing on The Q's large screen,
Obama welcomed the athletes and fans who traveled from around the
world to celebrate diversity through sport.
“I know some of you have come from
places where it requires courage, even defiance, to come out –
sometimes at great personal risk,” Obama said. “You should know
that the United States stands with you and for your human rights –
just as our athletes stand with you on the field at these Games.
After all, the very idea of America is that no matter who you are,
what you look like, where you come from, or who you love – you can
make it if you try. That's who we are and that's who we should
continually strive to be.”
“We're also a country that loves
competition, so let's get these games underway,” he added. (The
video is embedded on this page. Visit
our video library for more videos.)