Craig Maxwell-Keys: Premiership gby referee me out as gay via WhatsApp - BBC Sport

Contents:

• TOP ENGLISH GBY REFEREE CRAIG MAXWELL-KEYS OUT AS GAY
• WHO IS GBY REF NIGEL OWENS? WELSHMAN BRAVELY ME OUT AS GAY, FOUGHT BULIMIA AND OVERME SUICI
• DISMANTLG STEREOTYP: 10 INSPIRG GAY RUGBY PLAYERS AND PERSONALI
• LIST | 5 GAY RUGBY STARS WHO ARE OUT AND PROUD
• ‘I NSIRED CHEMIL STRATN,’ SAYS GAY GBY REFEREE NIGEL OWENS
• CRAIG MAXWELL-KEYS: PREMIERSHIP GBY REFEREE ME OUT AS GAY VIA WHATSAPP
• THE ONLY GAY ON THE PCH
• 10 GAY RUGBY PLAYERS WHO MA THEIR COME OUT
• REFEREE NIGEL OWENS ON BEG THE WORLD'S BT AND A GAY MAN GBY UNN

TOP ENGLISH GBY REFEREE CRAIG MAXWELL-KEYS OUT AS GAY

Craig Maxwell-Keys, a top gby referee England who also do ternatnal match, has e out publicly as gay an terview wh the BBC. One official got him touch wh Nigel Owens, one the bt gby refere the world, who had e out as gay a few years earlier. He knows he has the full support of people the sport and that beg gay won’t be a barrier.

In 2007, the Mynyddcerrig-native shocked the sports world by g out as gay.

WHO IS GBY REF NIGEL OWENS? WELSHMAN BRAVELY ME OUT AS GAY, FOUGHT BULIMIA AND OVERME SUICI

6 In 2007 Owens shocked the sports world by g out as gayCred: SWNS:South Wt News Service. It's such a big taboo to be gay my le of work, I had to thk very hard about bee I didn't want to jeopardise my reer.

A GAY REF IN A MACHO SPORT. "It's such a big taboo to be gay my le of work, I had to thk very hard about bee I didn't want to jeopardise my reer, " he nfsed. "When I beme a referee, beme clear that there was nobody the sport who was gay.

DISMANTLG STEREOTYP: 10 INSPIRG GAY RUGBY PLAYERS AND PERSONALI

"Although that’s not to say that the sport is openly homophobic.

LIST | 5 GAY RUGBY STARS WHO ARE OUT AND PROUD

Owens knew he was gay his late teens. In light of recent ntroversy regardg homophobic slurs by Israel Fol, we thought we would she a light on 10 fluential gay gby personali.

‘I NSIRED CHEMIL STRATN,’ SAYS GAY GBY REFEREE NIGEL OWENS

The players have bee a bean of light bee they overme stereotyp and other challeng faced by homosexual athlet way too often. In this article, we’ll name ten of the most notable gay gby personali, analyze their acplishments, discs how they are shapg the game today, and asss their impact on the overall perceptn of homosexual profsnal athlet around the world. That beg said, due to s physily, gby is regard as a “manly” sport, which mak more difficult for gay players to publicly acknowledge their preference.

At the same time, there are many misnceptns about this betiful sport, which has led to the margalizatn and targetg of gay players.

Some high-profile stars like Israel Fol have recently ma headl due to potentially homophobic posts on social media.

CRAIG MAXWELL-KEYS: PREMIERSHIP GBY REFEREE ME OUT AS GAY VIA WHATSAPP

This is one of the ma reasons why reprentativ of World Rugby met wh the lears of Internatnal Gay Rugby (IGR) to help eradite homophobia and tolerance om the game. Notable homosexual gby players and personali. Here’s a list of ten notable gay gby players and how they are shapg the game today.

The very first high-profile gby player to ever e out to the public as gay is former Atralian ternatnal Ian Roberts. Even though Ian Roberts may have been the first high-profile player to openly adm beg gay, Keegan Hirst was the first to ever do while still active. Currently a Wakefield Try prop, Hirst has bee one of the most notable gay athlet, earng himself a startg role after signg a ntract wh the League si 2016.

Sam Stanley beme the first openly gay Rugby Unn and Sevens player the UK. Although he never played gby at a profsnal level, Mark Bgham has bee an inic figure for gay gby players and sportspeople around the world. Known for his heroics durg the September 11 attacks, Bgham was a robt send-row man who played for the gay-clive San Francis Fog RFC.

THE ONLY GAY ON THE PCH

The Mark Kendall Bgham Memorial Tournament, simply known as the Bgham Cup, is a biennial gay gby unn tournament which was held for the first time 2002. Thomas publicly me out 2009 and has sce scribed his experience as a secretly gay player, revealg how the social prsure and stereotyp pose a signifint challenge for many athlet today.

The Welshman is also a TV personaly and a voted activist for the LGBT e, wng “Gay Sports Personaly of the De” at the Stonewall awards ceremony London back 2015. Rugby referee Nigel Owens is one of the most proment gay men sport. As an openly gay figure one of the most mascule of sports Nigel Owens is a rary – but he might never have achieved his inic stat gby unn if he had gone ahead wh plans for a chemil stratn.

“I didn’t want to be gay, ” Owens, who me out 2007, told CNN.

10 GAY RUGBY PLAYERS WHO MA THEIR COME OUT

“I actually went to the doctor at one stage to see if I uld be chemilly strated any way, if would get rid of me beg gay. They n’t tell other people they’re gay bee they’re fightg themselv.

However, he believ the mcular world of gby unn is way ahead of other global sports when to acceptg gay stars, although Gareth Thomas beme the first profsnal player to open up about his sexualy as recently as 2009.

REFEREE NIGEL OWENS ON BEG THE WORLD'S BT AND A GAY MAN GBY UNN

“It annoys me sometim when people say gby is homophobic. Craig Maxwell-Keys explas a cisn to Exeter Chiefs' Jack YeandleProfsnal gby has ntually embraced morn technology - so 's no surprise that Premiership referee Craig Maxwell-Keys took a siar approach towards g out as gay.

"Gunng over prejudice to chase Olympic dreamMaxwell-Keys drifted towards beg a match official by chance - he broke his wrist playg for Lichfield as a youngster and, while reverg om the jury, he enrolled on a refereeg and tly bten by the refereeg bug, he took charge at the Staffordshire Unr-12 Ftival at the age of 17 and worked his way up the ladr to bee a full-time referee urse, Maxwell-Keys is not the only openly gay gby referee - Nigel Owens, who me out 2007, is one of the sport's hight-profile officials and has featured at three World Cups. Rerd-Breakg Rugby Unn Referee & Gay Sports Personaly of the Year. Publicly me out as a gay 2007 makg him the first openly gay gby referee.