In 1980, Dr. Tom Waddell, a 1968 Olympic decathlete, led a group of San Francisco residents in conceiving the event now known as the Gay Games. Tom dreamed of a sporting event based on the philosophy that "doing one's personal best should be the paramount goal in any athletic endeavor."

The San Francisco Arts & Athletics (SFAA) was incorporated and supervised the logistics of both Gay Games I and II. Tom Waddell lost his battle with AIDS and died in July 1987, less than a year after Gay Games II, but his legacy was assured as the inspiration for future Gay Games. The SFAA board of directors took steps to enlarge its membership beyond the Bay Area and in 1989 changed its name to the Federation of Gay Games.

The Federation of Gay Games ensures that the Gay Games offers participants the opportunity to express themselves openly and to experience camaraderie and validation through sport and culture.

Wanting to keep the competitive and festive spirit alive, the gay and lesbian aquatics community decided to host a yearly championship event and San Diego hosted the first meet in 1987. The name International Gay and Lesbian Aquatics was selected that summer of 1987.

The mission of IGLA is to promote participation in aquatic sports among lesbians and gay men and friends of our community, and to ensure maintenance of the highest standards for aquatic competitions and international standards for all Gay Games and IGLA Championships. IGLA is the world's foremost international organization solely devoted to developing and promoting gay and lesbian swimming, water polo, diving, and synchronized swimming. IGLA representatives formally established a mission, an executive board and bylaws at Gay Games III in Vancouver in 1990.

In 2002, Juan and Chad started Chicago Riptide by gathering a small group of former polo players and swimmers. In the beginning we operated without a pool. Every practice we would be at a new location, we literally traveled all over Chicagoland to different pools 3 times a week for practice. One year later Chicago Riptide was able to partner with Gill Park and run their water polo program in exchange for use of the pool year round on a regular schedule. In 2006 Chicago Riptide voted on Executive Officers and bylaws.

The Federation of Gay Games and Chicago Gay Games VII represent the principles of “Participation, Inclusion and Personal Best™” for more than 20 years and empowers tens of thousands of LGBT athletes through fellowship and friendly competition.