It's been two weeks since Jon Gruden's career imploded with the publication of his racist, misogynistic, and homophobic emails leading to his hasty resignation as head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders, as this columnist previously wrote, and the Raiders have gone 2-0 since then. With gay defensive end Carl Nassib playing a key role in a much-improved defense, the Raiders are now 5-2 and appear to be a surprising contender in the NFL playoff picture.
Online registration open for Sin City Classic
When the Sin City Classic multi-sports festival returns in January, it will honor the memory of former SCC director Ken Scearce with the announcement of an annual Ken Scearce Leadership Award and will donate proceeds from its Cornhole for Charity event to the Ken Scearce Scholarship Fund.
Scearce, a 2014 inductee in the North American Gay Amateur Athletic Alliance Hall of Fame, was director of Sin City starting in 2017 before his unexpected death in July of an apparent heart attack. NAGAAA created the fund in his honor and said it "will help NAGAAA individuals with higher education needs as well as athletic leadership achievements to further LGBTQ sports."
Sin City is scheduled for January 13-16 in Las Vegas.
SCC organizers said COVID-19 protocols will be followed.
"As of now, the festival will be following the state of Nevada guidelines at the time of the event," said Jason Peplinski, co-executive director. "These may change, but currently masks are required at all indoor facilities. No masks are required for outdoor events. COVID testing or vaccine verification is not currently required by any of our venues. Each sport is able to implement their own protocols for their own sports, but festival events will be following whatever the current state guidelines are."
Officials with some sports have indicated they will indeed have stricter protocols in place to protect athletes and spectators. For instance, in wrestling, a sport with extended close contact, organizer Wrestlers WithOut Borders will require participants to have proof of being fully vaccinated by December 31. COVID-19 requirements for each of the 24 sports can be found on the sports pages of the Sin City Classic website, or by contacting individual organizers.
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