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• BRISTOL'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM FALLY CROWNED CHAMPNSTHE BRISTOL BISONS WERE FORMED 2005BRISTOLPOSTBOOKMARKSHARENEWSBYTRISTAN CORKSENR REPORTER05:00, 16 APR 2023BOOKMARKTHE BRISTOL BISONS (IMAGE: BRISTOL BISONS)SIGN UP TO RECEIVE THE BT AND BIGGT GBY NEWS OM ACROSS THE SOUTH WTMORE NEWSLETTERS SUBSCRIBEINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.MORE NEWSLETTERSWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!WE HAVE MORE NEWSLETTERSSHOW ME SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE&TIM;GROUP 28 SIGN UP TO RECEIVE THE BT AND BIGGT GBY NEWS OM ACROSS THE SOUTH WTINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.SIGN UPNO THANKS, CLOSEWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE &TIM;GROUP 28THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!
• BRISTOL'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM FALLY CROWNED CHAMPNS
• BRISTOL BISONS GAY GBY PLAYER ALLOWED TO STAY UK
• GAY GBY PLAYER KEN MACHARIA OF BRISTOL BISONS FACG PORTATN OM UK
• GAY RUGBY CHAMPNSHIPS BIRMGHAM
• GAY GBY PLAYER WS FIVE-YEAR BATTLE AGAST PORTATN TO KENYA
• IS GBY AS GAY AS LOOKS? A CURUFC PLAYER’S PERSPECTIVE
• BRISTOL'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM FALLY CROWNED CHAMPNSTHE BRISTOL BISONS WERE FORMED 2005BRISTOLPOSTBOOKMARKSHARENEWSBYTRISTAN CORKSENR REPORTER05:00, 16 APR 2023BOOKMARKTHE BRISTOL BISONS (IMAGE: BRISTOL BISONS)SIGN UP TO RECEIVE THE BT AND BIGGT GBY NEWS OM ACROSS THE SOUTH WTMORE NEWSLETTERS SUBSCRIBEINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.MORE NEWSLETTERSWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!WE HAVE MORE NEWSLETTERSSHOW ME SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE&TIM;GROUP 28 SIGN UP TO RECEIVE THE BT AND BIGGT GBY NEWS OM ACROSS THE SOUTH WTINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.SIGN UPNO THANKS, CLOSEWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE &TIM;GROUP 28THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!
• HEARD OF THE STEELERS? NO, NOT THEM, THE GAY GBY TEAM OM LONDON
• IN FROM THE SI - UPG MOVIE ABOUT A GAY GBY TEAM
• BRISTOL GBY TEAM URG HOME OFFICE TO STOP GAY TEAMMATE BEG PORTED TO KENYA

BRISTOL'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM FALLY CROWNED CHAMPNSTHE BRISTOL BISONS WERE FORMED 2005BRISTOLPOSTBOOKMARKSHARENEWSBYTRISTAN CORKSENR REPORTER05:00, 16 APR 2023BOOKMARKTHE BRISTOL BISONS (IMAGE: BRISTOL BISONS)SIGN UP TO RECEIVE THE BT AND BIGGT GBY NEWS OM ACROSS THE SOUTH WTMORE NEWSLETTERS SUBSCRIBEINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.MORE NEWSLETTERSWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!WE HAVE MORE NEWSLETTERSSHOW ME SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE&TIM;GROUP 28 SIGN UP TO RECEIVE THE BT AND BIGGT GBY NEWS OM ACROSS THE SOUTH WTINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.SIGN UPNO THANKS, CLOSEWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE &TIM;GROUP 28THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!

We aim to provi a safe and open environment for gay, straight and bisexual dividuals to participate sport, regardls of; age, abily, experience or sexual provi accs to sport whout prejudice. The Bristol Bisons RFC (Bisons) were tablished 2005, followg a vis to the Bgham Cup gay gby tournament the summer of 2004 London.

BRISTOL'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM FALLY CROWNED CHAMPNS

The founrs felt that would be good to spread the msag of an clive gay gby team the South wt. As part of Bristol Pri 2010 the club promoted self more visibly particularly on the Bristol gay scene. In July 2011, the team were chosen as hosts for the Unn Cup 2013 European Gay gby tournament.

Bristol’s first gay gby team has won the league they play for the first time, 18 years after was formed. The Bisons play the Internatnal Gay Rugby leagu, and fished send om bottom last season, so endg the regular season as champns is que the feat. The club h the headl a few years ago when succsfully led a mpaign to get settled stat for one of s members, Ken Macharia, who had ped persecutn for beg gay his native Kenya.

BRISTOL BISONS GAY GBY PLAYER ALLOWED TO STAY UK

Image source, Phillip RogersonImage ptn, Kenh Macharia said he would have faced persecutn Kenya for beg gayA gay Ain gby player threatened wh portatn has won the right to rema the Macharia, 41, who moved to the UK more than a ago has been granted refugee stat. Whout he feared he uld have been sent back to Kenya, where homosexual activy is illegal and punishable wh heavy jail sentenc.

A mpaign was started by the gay- and bisexual-clive Bristol Bisons RFC, where Mr Macharia is a club member. A judge found he would be at "real risk of ser harm as a gay man" and that his "human rights would be breached" were he to be removed om the UK.

"Mr Macharia, who liv Glastonbury, Somerset, feared mob vlence or blackmail the east Ain natn where the Foreign Office warned gay Brish travellers that holdg hands or kissg public uld lead to on this storyRelated Inter LksThe BBC is not rponsible for the ntent of external s. Ken Macharia, the gay player wh clive gby club Bristol Bisons who has been fightg for asylum the UK, says he is feelg "hopels and prsed" after beg told that he has lost his portatn battle. Macharia, who moved to Bra a ago, now fac beg sent back to Kenya, where same-sex relatnships are illegal and n be punished wh heavy jail 39-year-old fears mob vlence or blackmail the East Ain natn, where the Foreign Office warns gay Brish travellers that holdg hands or kissg public uld lead to mechanil engeer, who me to the UK to study for a Masters gree and is a player and club photographer wh the Bisons, has been fightg portatn for three years.

GAY GBY PLAYER KEN MACHARIA OF BRISTOL BISONS FACG PORTATN OM UK

Macharia has been supported by the Bisons throughout the drawn-out asylum procs He has prevly told how he first had to nvce officials of his sexualy wh a wealth of evince before tryg to prove the danger he fac as a gay man Kenya.

GAY RUGBY CHAMPNSHIPS BIRMGHAM

In sports news, the pennt newspaper B247 reports that the cy's gay iendly gby team, the Bristol Bisons, have celebrated a historic w over London based Kg's Cross Steelers to w the Internatnal Gay Rugby’s Southern Development League. Live Streamg will be available om the Unn Cup webse, and selected highlights broadst on the LGBT+ rad statn Gayd.

A gay gby player is celebratg after wng a five-year battle agast portatn to Kenya, where he feared he would be persecuted bee of his sexualy.

His employer has said there is still a role for him at the May 2019 a Kenyan high urt judgment upheld crimalisatn of gay relatnships on the basis that the 2010 Kenyan nstutn, which f marriage as between those of the oppose sex, would be unrmed if gay people uld start livg immigratn judge who led Macharia’s favour, Lorrae Mensah, found that openly gay men Kenya were at risk of persecutn by reason of “discrimatory laws that create a hostile environment which gay men are exposed to a real risk of discrimatn.

GAY GBY PLAYER WS FIVE-YEAR BATTLE AGAST PORTATN TO KENYA

“Judge Mensah ma clear the tribunal’s ncern that the Home Office’s April 2020 report on Kenya did not accurately reflect the risk to gay men Kenya.

Wh the issue of homophobia football htg the headl, one player reveals his experience as a gay man the world of gby.

One stunt attribut the solidary among gby teams to his posive experienc as a gay gby playerOli Butler.

IS GBY AS GAY AS LOOKS? A CURUFC PLAYER’S PERSPECTIVE

Rugby, taken out of s sportg ntext, is about as homoerotic as a platonic activy n get. I beme obssed wh gby at the same age I began to realise I was gay: 11. I was very lucky to have this social pal to protect me when mours emerged that I was gay.

(If you didn’t know, I’m gay and play gby #niche). The only b of -game homophobia that has ever been directed at me me one of my first XV gam when the opposn hooker emerged om a scm and lled me a “f***g f*ggot”.

It was this reactn which has epomised my relatnship wh homophobia: gby, your teammat have your back. My favoure recent one has been: “Do you watch gay porn?

BRISTOL'S FIRST GAY GBY TEAM FALLY CROWNED CHAMPNSTHE BRISTOL BISONS WERE FORMED 2005BRISTOLPOSTBOOKMARKSHARENEWSBYTRISTAN CORKSENR REPORTER05:00, 16 APR 2023BOOKMARKTHE BRISTOL BISONS (IMAGE: BRISTOL BISONS)SIGN UP TO RECEIVE THE BT AND BIGGT GBY NEWS OM ACROSS THE SOUTH WTMORE NEWSLETTERS SUBSCRIBEINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.MORE NEWSLETTERSWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!WE HAVE MORE NEWSLETTERSSHOW ME SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE SEE OURPRIVACY NOTICE&TIM;GROUP 28 SIGN UP TO RECEIVE THE BT AND BIGGT GBY NEWS OM ACROSS THE SOUTH WTINVALID EMAILSOMETHG WENT WRONG, PLEASE TRY AGA LATER.SIGN UPNO THANKS, CLOSEWE E YOUR SIGN-UP TO PROVI NTENT WAYS YOU’VE NSENTED TO AND IMPROVE OUR UNRSTANDG OF YOU. THIS MAY CLU ADVERTS OM AND THIRD PARTI BASED ON OUR KNOWLEDGE OF YOU. MORE &TIM;GROUP 28THANK YOU FOR SUBSCRIBG!

This nocent ignorance do filter through to what I would refer to as ‘lazy homophobia’. General “locker room banter”, to quote Mr Tmp, is omniprent – like llg someone gay for not enjoyg the fensive aspect of the game. Comments like this don’t make someone homophobic, but they do pat an image of an unwelg environment, which n make very timidatg to e out to people – particularly if those around you are olr (and bigger).

I thk ’s a shame that flippant ments like this give the imprsn that gby is not a sport for all sexuali bee, while may seem disuragg om the outsi, homophobia, om my experience, is not particularly apparent a team. A major reason for this is the high-profile openly gay dividuals who are begng to brg gby’s hidn diversy to light. Nigel Owens, who is wily regnised as one of the bt refere the world, is openly gay and has been vol on how the gby world has been hugely acmodatg.

HEARD OF THE STEELERS? NO, NOT THEM, THE GAY GBY TEAM OM LONDON

It is the sport’s rponsibily to posively promote anti-homophobia, and anti-bullyg general, so that the majory of people who are acceptg have a lour voice than those who prott. Niamh LewisMar 1, 2021, 09:52 AM ETWhen Eammon Ashton-Atkson, an Atralian televisn reporter, cid to film his gby club as they went to the biannual Bgham Cup 2018, he uld never have imaged the posive reactn a documentary about would film Steelers is about London-based Kgs Cross Steelers, the world's first gay gby club and one of over 60 such sis world-wi.

Although the stori the film are related to the stggl of g out, prsn, and a history of bullyg for beg gay, they're are told a way which wir dienc n empathise wh. "It's a story about a gay gby club, but 's also a story about human stggle, and people g sport and their sense of muny to help each other, which is universal, " Ashton-Atkson told ESPN. "She's got a certifite for the hight achg level, and sce she left the Steelers she's been nsistently overlooked and not even shortlisted [for jobs] than men who are ls qualified and ls experienced than her, which is heart-breakg and disgtg, " Ashton-Atkson beg gay 2021 wtern society is often unremarkable today, you don't have to go back very far to fd trmatic stori.

IN FROM THE SI - UPG MOVIE ABOUT A GAY GBY TEAM

"But, if 's easier to e out now, then why do we need gay gby clubs?

"That's a thought that do go through your md, and while 's generally a posive there are still pockets of homophobia. Then, 2019, Atralia's Israel Fol spouted his famo anti-gay ments on Instagram, sayg "hell awas" gay opened the drawer and started the ed aga om scratch, and turned to the unnventnal documentary has bee.

"Wh beg gay, you don't thk that I grew up sperately wantg to change my sexualy, like, wishg the gay away?

BRISTOL GBY TEAM URG HOME OFFICE TO STOP GAY TEAMMATE BEG PORTED TO KENYA

They were dubbed the tabloids as 'Harlequeens, ' there was homophobic ments, and a fear over ntractg HIV and AIDS.

"For those of who grew up when wasn't ok to be gay, jt really before the ter was mon, there was huge stigma. You had Margaret Thatcher's Sectn 28 [a law brought the UK by a Conservative ernment om 1988-2003 to the "prohib the promotn of homosexualy"], misnceptns about the HIV vis, " Ashton-Atkson explas. "For those guys who were settg up that team 1995, they were real trailblazers bee they were gog out to different teams Essex week--week out smashg down stereotyp one game of gby at a time and om what I heard, the men Essex, they had never met an openly gay man before, let alone an openly gay sportsman.

However, "There are still issu wh homophobia and homophobic language beg ed on the pch. "And one of the thgs we've been workg on wh Harlequs and Monash Universy is that a lot of that isn't actually homophobia, 's the culture of clubs, the challeng of languag not beg followed through.