By KHT Staff. Image via KH City Govt.
KAOHSIUNG — The 2026 Asia Pride Games (APG) concluded on May 3 following a closing ceremony held at the Kaohsiung Music Center [高雄流行音樂中心] Music Hall. The three-day event, held in Kaohsiung for the first time, formally ended with a flag handover ceremony to next year’s host country, Thailand.
Lai Wen-wei [賴文偉], President of the Taiwan Gay Sports Development Association [台灣同志運動發展協會], presented the APG flag to Thailand’s APG Ambassadors.
The Chair of the Asia Pride Games Alliance [亞洲同志運動聯盟] credited the Kaohsiung City Government Sports Development Bureau [高雄市政府運動發展局], and the Taiwan Gay Sports Development Association for their efforts, saying that the execution of the opening and closing ceremonies, as well as athlete services, was commendable and that the “Kaohsiung experience” would establish a standard and paradigm for future APG events.
Organizers highlighted that this year’s APG included several inclusive initiatives, such as gender-friendly restrooms and enhanced gender awareness training for staff. The competition categories deviated from traditional binary divisions. For instance, bodybuilding included a “non-binary physique group,” alongside specific community categories nicknamed the “Bear group” and “Monkey group,” and a creative “Victoria’s Angel Wings group.” International standard dance competitions utilized clothing styles rather than biological gender for categorization, including a men’s double group. Other events, including pickleball, volleyball, bowling, soccer, and track and field, allowed participation based on gender identity.
