The dust has settled on one of the biggest events the hosted by the New Zealand GLBT community, but the organisers of Outgames are still reeling from the experience.


Co-chair David Hindley says Outgames was a fantastic week for all involved and was impressed with the achievements of the Outgames crew.


“It went so well from start to finish and I’m really impressed with the huge amount of work put in by those who organised Outgames and those who volunteered,” he says. 
“As for the competitors, the international visitors I spoke to were really pleased with the Outgames, Wellington and New Zealand as a whole.”


Outgames is now offering the chance for all participants to fill out an online survey about their experiences. 
Questions about nightlife, public transport, business and shopping are posed, as well as Outgames-specific questions about organisation, management, communications, information to participants and marketing. 
People who went to the human rights conference also have the opportunity to fill out the survey.
 Check it out HERE.

“The online survey is a good opportunity for those who went to Outgames to tell us what we did well,” says David. “It’s also a place for them to put forward constructive criticism or make mention of anything that didn’t work well for them.”


David says it’s hard to pick out a highlight out of the Outgames calendar, but mentions the conference as a particular achievement of the week.
“There were more than 300 people in attendance at the conference, as well as a raft of sponsorship support and strong key speakers that made for a really enriching three days,” he says. 
David was also on hand at all but one of the sports to give out medals and speak to competitors. “It was a great experience to be out there at the sporting events, which is the main reason everyone was here,” he says.


David says the Gay and Lesbian International Sports Association (GLISA) was happy with the way the games turned out in Wellington and has a positive view to the future.


“I think because the second Asia Pacific Outgames here in Wellington was very strong, it makes it easier for GLISA to work with cities that may be interested in running the games,” he says.


“I’m encouraged about the future of Outgames after the games in Wellington was so successful. There will be people out there who went home thinking about putting on the games in their own cities and that’s really fantastic.
“

The organisers all had full-time jobs throughout the years of planning for Outgames and when they did come around I only took that week off work, but the nights where we all got 3 to 4 hours sleep were well worth it in the end.”