Pride Week is getting a litte wet and wild

Calgary Pride Week is going to be getting a little wet and wild this year – with a massive 247 meter-long (810 foot-long) wet slide.

WinSport announced that it has partnered with Calgary Pride to host the kick-off event for the 26^th annual Pride Week at the end of August.

The 18+ event – held at Canada Olympic Park – celebrates and promotes a community free from discrimination based on gender identity or sexual orientation.

In addition to the slide, the kick-off will include an outdoor festival, entertainment from some of the city's top DJs, a cocktail garden and performances from glittery dancers and high-heeled drag queens.

The Pride Slide will be open from noon until 11 p.m. on August 27. Riders who purchase tickets will be given an inner tube and assigned a two-hour window in which they can slide.

Joining the festivities are Pride Slide ambassadors: speed skater Anastasia Bucsis and bobsleigh team member Simon Dunn.

Bucsis, a two-time Olympian, came out during the 2013 Pride Parade, while Dunn is an aspiring Olympian with the Australian team and the first openly gay man to represent his country in bobsleigh.

"Being an openly gay athlete myself, the importance of WinSport holding such an event is paramount," says Dunn. "Along with top athletes giving their support, this shows the greater community that LGBTQ athletes are not only welcome but valued participants in sport."

The Pride Slide is just one of more than 30 events that are being held as part of Calgary Pride Week's celebrations. 

"WinSport has shown real leadership in promoting LGBTQ inclusion in sport and this new Pride Slide and Festival is an amazing way to take that support even further into the community,” said Stephen Wright, President of Calgary Pride. “To every Calgarian, our message is: come to WinSport, celebrate diversity, slide down the enormous Pride Slide and join the party. Because a society that celebrates diversity, is also a fun society."

Other Pride events include the famous Calgary Pride Parade – held at noon on September 4, 2016, on 9 Avenue. It is Canada's fastest-growing pride parade, with upwards of 60,000 annual spectators and participants.

In addition, the newly expanded Pride in the Park music festival will take place on September 4 from 12:30 to 6 p.m. at Shaw Millennium Park. It is a free outdoor cultural celebration with live music, activities for youth and children, and a local marketplace.

The 2016 Pride Week runs from August 26 – September 5.