Comedian Margaret Cho has been confirmed to join the slate of internationally known celebrities set to participate in the July 15 opening ceremony of the 2006 Chicago Gay Games. The ceremony will take place in the 60,000-seat Soldier Field, the home of professional football’s Chicago Bears.

Gay Games VII is expected to host 12,000 participants from some 70 countries in Chicago July 15-22. Approximately 12,000 athletes from more than 70 countries will compete in 30 sports ranging from softball to dancesport, swimming to tennis. Gay Games VII will include band, cheerleading and color guard performances, a chorus, an ancillary arts festival, and a series of community-organized social events and parties.

“How could I not participate in an event where 60,000 gay- and lesbian-friendly people will fill an entire American football stadium? The irony alone is fantastic,” Cho said.

“Seriously, the Gay Games have become the pinnacle of athletic competition and international fellowship in the world’s LGBT community, and I wouldn’t miss being a part of the opening ceremony.”

Cho joins a slate of more than 60 music, television, arts, culture and sports legends from around the world performing in the 2006 Gay Games opening and closing ceremonies.

“More than any one element of the event, the opening ceremony carries the power and personal transformation that embodies the Gay Games as a life-changing experience,” said Kile Ozier, ceremonies director. “Margaret Cho is an icon for so many people, and especially for the gay and lesbian community with whom she seems to have such a direct connection.”

Gay Games VII will hold events throughout Chicago and its surrounding metro area, including Oak Park, Evanston and Crystal Lake. The closing ceremony is Saturday, July 22, at Wrigley Field, home to baseball’s legendary Chicago Cubs. Tickets to both ceremonies as well as to the ticketed sports and cultural events are on sale now at www.gaygameschicago.org.

Bam Bam & Celeste, a movie written by and starring Cho and comedian Bruce Daniels, is currently screening at various film festivals around the globe. In 1999, Cho’s one-woman show “I’m the One That I Want” played off Broadway, toured the U.S., and became a best-selling book and a feature film. Cho’s second show, “Notorious C.H.O.,” culminated with a concert at Carnegie Hall that was taped for a double-sided CD release in 2002 and a second feature film. In 2003, Cho’s “Revolution” played in more than 60 cities, grossing more than $4 million in ticket sales. The CD version was nominated for a Grammy and the DVD sold 100,000 units within two months of its release. In 2005, Cho again toured the U.S. and also Australia and London with her “Assassin” tour. “Assassin” was then released in theaters and on DVD. She also released her second book, I Have Chosen to Stay and Fight, published by Riverhead Books.

-Press release