The resort went to great lengths to welcome the players, projecting the Sin City Shootout logo on the side of the building, printing it on room keys and putting employees in tournament T-shirts. The Tropicana hosted the visiting athletes for the second time this year, selling more than 1,100 rooms each night of the tournament. “It was a very simple idea that blew up,” Castro said. Originally it was only a softball tournament with about 60 teams, but in 2011 other sports started to join in. Ryan launched the Las Vegas tournament in 2008 at a small hotel off the Strip, selling 150 rooms. He said his friends thought he was crazy when he said he wanted to hold it in Las Vegas. “It comes from a passion (for sports) and a love for my community and treating them the way they should be treated.”Īfter participating in leagues across Southern California, Ryan wanted to take the best elements from each and combine them into a winter tournament. I do not micromanage, but I’m very detail-oriented,” he said. “From a stereotypical standpoint, gay athletes can’t be themselves in mainstream sports organizations,” agreed tournament director Eric Ryan, a 23-year firefighter from Southern Caifornia.Īs tournament director, Ryan schedules games, books venues, finds performers, plans after-parties and auditions dancers. “I finally found a place as a gay man that was safe to play ball.” “It broke every stereotype I’d ever heard of,” he said. “It’s like a fraternity almost.”Ĭastro, winner of four Gay Games gold medals for softball, said that gay and lesbian community leagues were commonplace in big cities like Los Angeles and Atlanta, but over the last decade they started popping up everywhere.Ĭastro began playing 23 years ago when he learned his gay neighbor played on a team. Ever,” said tournament volunteer Gary Castro, from Los Angeles. There were also less traditional sports like dodgeball, bridge and darts.Ībout 180 softball teams competed in this year’s tournament. Players competed in the usual sports like basketball, soccer and tennis. Thousands of gay and lesbian athletes took over the Tropicana over the weekend, suiting up for action on fields around the Las Vegas Valley in the 7th annual Sin City Shootout tournament.Īpproximately 6,500 athletes from gay and lesbian community teams across the U.S. (Ronda Churchill/Las Vegas Review-Journal) Las Vegas Vipers participated in the 7th Annual Sin City Shootout Sports Festival, a LGBT sports tournament featuring teams from across the country competing locally in softball, soccer, tennis, volleyball, and kickball among others. Las Vegas Vipers softball pitcher Caesar Contreras, center, keeps his eye on a pop-up during a game against Denver Dirty Lil’s Devils at Desert Breeze Park Sunday, Jan.