Photos: Openly gay athlet | CNN

Contents:

• ATHLET WHO ARE GAY
• EACH OF AMERI’S BIG 5 SPORTS CURRENTLY HAS AN OUT GAY MAN THE PROS. THAT’S NEVER HAPPENED
• WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS
• JAGS' MAXEN IS FIRST MALE AMERIN PRO SPORTS ACH TO E OUT AS GAY
• THERE ARE VAR PERSONAL REASONS MORE GAY MALE PRO ATHLET HAVE NOT E OUT. HERE ARE 7 OF THEM
• HERE ARE THE 6 GAY MEN WHO HAVE BEEN OUT PUBLICLY WHILE PETG PRO BASKETBALL
• KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY
• OPENLY GAY ATHLET
• NORTH AMERI’S FOUR BIGGT PRO SPORTS LEAGU HAVE BEEN AROUND A BED 398 YEARS. THEY’VE HAD TWO OPENLY GAY ACTIVE PLAYERS
• FAMEWATCHER SEARCH PRIMARY MENU SKIP TO NTENT HOMECELEBRY HAIR TRANSPLANTCELEBRY PLASTIC SURGERYCELEBRY LEATHER JACKETBODY SHAPER SEARCH FOR: GAY MALE ATHLETGAY GOLFERS LIST: PGA PLAYERS, PROS, AND COLLEGE ATHLET
• JAGUARS ASSOCIATE STRENGTH ACH OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR US-BASED PRO LEAGU

ATHLET WHO ARE GAY

She has been a relatnship wh Atralian soccer player Sarah Walsh for three 38Natnaly: Uned Stat of AmeriBirthplace: Reddg, CaliforniaTeams: Chigo Red StarsTennis great Billie Jean Kg beme the first proment female profsnal athlete to e out as gay back 79Natnaly: Uned Stat of AmeriBirthplace: Long Beach, California, Uned Stat of AmeriOlympic diver Greg Louganis is openly gay. He married his partner Johnny Chaillo 63Natnaly: Uned Stat of AmeriBirthplace: El Cajon, California, Uned Stat of AmeriWNBA player Sheryl Swoop announced that she was gay 2005. Age: 52Natnaly: Uned Stat of AmeriBirthplace: Brownfield, Texas, Uned Stat of AmeriTeams: Hoton Comets, Uned Stat women's natnal basketball team, Texas Tech Lady Rairs basketballNBA player Jason Colls me out as gay an terview wh Sports Illtrated magaze 2013.

His announcement provoked mixed reactns om his fellow players and the 44Natnaly: Uned Stat of AmeriBirthplace: Northridge, Los Angel, CaliforniaTeams: Boston Celtics, Atlanta Hawks, Washgton Wizards, Memphis Grizzli, Brooklyn NetsAmerin soccer player Abby Wambach is openly gay.

EACH OF AMERI’S BIG 5 SPORTS CURRENTLY HAS AN OUT GAY MAN THE PROS. THAT’S NEVER HAPPENED

Atralian A-League soccer star Josh Cavallo me out as gay an October vio posted to his social media, beg hailed as the first current male top-flight profsnal soccer player to publicly do so. "He ntued: "Growg up I always felt the need to hi myself, you know, bee I was ashamed, and ashamed I'll never be able to do what I love and be gay.

The 28-year-old Natnal Football League player and Rairs fensive leman ma history when he me out as gay on Instagram durg Pri Month, beg the first veteran NFL player to e out as gay while signed to a regular-season ntract. The Bachelor star and former football player (who was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted ee agent and was on the practice squad of the Oakland Rairs and the Philalphia Eagl) me out as gay April, sayg he had fally e to terms wh his sexualy and the "next step all of this was sort of lettg people know.

Corey Walsh, the 27-year-old pro BMX rir and Vans spokperson, said he isn't normally the type of person to "let people " on his personal life, but felt was important to e out as gay a March Instagram post bee "there are a lot of people still stgglg wh the same suatns" and he "jt wanted to let people know that they are not alone.

WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS

Champn long track speedskater Conor McDermott-Mostowy never hid beg gay om his fay, iends, and fellow athlet, but he also wasn't one to rate his locker wh rabow Pri flags eher.

When Nashville Predators prospect Le Prokop me out this week, was the first time an active player unr ntract to an NHL team had ever publicly acknowledged they were gay. Overnight, Prokop's announcement doubled the number of out gay athlet currently playg the untry's four major men's sports — football, basketball, baseball and hockey. Gay male athlet face cultural barriers Part of the reason for the lack of out gay players men's profsnal sports uld be that there are jt fewer of them the game.

JAGS' MAXEN IS FIRST MALE AMERIN PRO SPORTS ACH TO E OUT AS GAY

"Gay men are a fe rource, so they n't exist great numbers every quarter, " Magrath told "Gay men are overreprented some areas, and as a nsequence are gog to be unrreprented sports.

Magrath helped thor a study that found that male athlet who me out as gay while still playg sports were largely met wh acceptance by their teammat.

NBA player Jason Colls, who me out 2013 while he was still playg the league, later told NPR " went great" when he scribed the perd after announcg he was gay. After Michael Sam beme the first openly gay athlete to be drafted to the NFL 2014, then-Miami Dolphs safety Don Jon tweeted "horrible, " rultg penalti and a spensn. There are key differenc the cultur of men's and women's athletics While few active players the major men's sports leagu have e out, many female profsnal athlet have said publicly that they're gay, om U.

THERE ARE VAR PERSONAL REASONS MORE GAY MALE PRO ATHLET HAVE NOT E OUT. HERE ARE 7 OF THEM

In June 2021, NFL fensive end Carl Nassib me out as gay a vio posted to his Instagram, addg he donated $100, 000 to The Trevor Project, an anizatn that foc on suici preventn LGBTQ youth after he stggled wh his sexualy for 15 years.

HERE ARE THE 6 GAY MEN WHO HAVE BEEN OUT PUBLICLY WHILE PETG PRO BASKETBALL

The athlete quickly ma a name for herself a seri of TV terviews, where she voiced her support of women's rights and LGBTQ rights as an openly gay woman.

"I thk female athlet, general, are at the foreont of every prott general bee we're gay, we're women, we're women of lor, we're sort of everythg all at one time, " Rapoe told NBC news 2019. " He scribed hidg his sexualy while playg for the Utah Jazz, but said some teammat who spected he was gay were welg about a 2007 terview on "Outsi the L, " Amaechi, who played five seasons the NBA, said he thought there were other gay players the league, but said 's "terrifyg" for some to e out.

Greg Louganis won four gold medals and one silver medal at three Olympic Gam om 1976 to 1988 as a diver, but wasn't until 1994 that he me out as gay. ""If I n show that I'm out and I'm fe, then hopefully the younger generatn will feel the same way, " Grer said the same year, Grer recieved a multi-ln dollar al om Nike, and beme the first openly gay basketball player endorsed by the brand, acrdg to The married her wife, Cherelle, 2019. -- Jaguars assistant strength and ndng ach Kev Maxen has bee the first male ach major Amerin men's profsnal sports to publicly e out as gay, tellg he ma the cisn bee he didn't want to hi who he is any longer and to possibly spire others siar 's a cisn and move that drew praise and support om owner Shad Khan, who was a vol and emphatic supporter of a cy ordance that expand protectns on the grounds of sexual orientatn, genr inty and genr exprsn.

KEV MAXEN BE FIRST MALE ACH A US MEN’S PROFSNAL SPORTS LEAGUE TO PUBLICLY E OUT AS GAY

Almost a ago, when Robbie Rogers, Jason Colls and Michael Sam all me out publicly three different pro sports leagu wh a year, I was nvced that there would then be a stream of gay and bi pro athlet who followed su and me out publicly. Now 2022 we have Carl Nassib out on a new team the NFL, Solomon Bat out on a new team mor league baseball, Le Prokop as an NHL prospect, Coll Mart the USL Champnship, and a few other gay guys playg pro sports while publicly out other untri. Over the years reportg at Outsports about gay athlet, there has been one most-mon qutn I’ve heard the most often, and ’s picked up steam over the last year: Are we on the precipice of a slew of gay and bi men g out pro sports and changg the game?

I’ve spoken to straight and gay athlet om var generatns — Michael Irv, Chris Kluwe, O’Callaghan, Trenton Thompson — and they’ve each told me that yeah, you’d hear some homophobic stuff high school, but by the time guys enter the ranks of profsnal sports, that’s mostly gone (though Kluwe had choice words and a lawsu for one ach). Send, while homophobic and anti-gay slurs may be rare as athlet elevate to high-level llege and pro sports, nversatns about women still abound.

OPENLY GAY ATHLET

While gay pro baseball player Bryan Ruby has wrten about athlet askg him about his relatnship, I’m not gog to profs that every locker room is que there yet. Playg out my theory on the other si of sports, men’s ele leagu are domated by straight guys bee so many of the gay and bi athlet have cid to foc on another votn before they get here.

He had a theory many years ago (unproven) that gay men gravated to sports bee was a great hidg spot: If you’re a football player, no one assum you’re gay. “We n fively say that gay men are numerilly ls attracted to popular mastream sports and more attracted to athetic sports, ” Anrson told Outsports.

Instead, gay men are highly over-reprented multiple other sports: sports that are judged, require athetic appeal, and are more dividualistic. If you accept this premise — there are simply fewer gay and bi men who choose profsnal sports than the general populatn — the rt of the reasons substantiate the power of beg a mory of a mory a mory ele-level men’s sports.

NORTH AMERI’S FOUR BIGGT PRO SPORTS LEAGU HAVE BEEN AROUND A BED 398 YEARS. THEY’VE HAD TWO OPENLY GAY ACTIVE PLAYERS

Yet football gets blamed for the arth of out football players (spe the NFL havg more current and former out gay and b athlet than all the other men’s Amerin pro leagu bed).

Havg more players and ach publicly talk about their gay iends and fay members, addn to their undyg support for people on their team who are gay, n absolutely help gay athlet and ach be their te selv both on the team and to spire others. “I don’t see sexualy as fluencg my beliefs or opns or perceptns of anybody, whether they’re gay, straight, bi, trans, experimental, I don’t re. Furthermore, he has openly e out as gay, and th, he is the first high-profile Atralian sportsperson and the first gby footballer the world to be such.

Sce Colls showed the world you uld be a gay man profsnal basketball, there has been a trickle of gay athlet to follow, most recently former NBA player and current Atralian pro basketball player Isaac Humphri.

FAMEWATCHER SEARCH PRIMARY MENU SKIP TO NTENT HOMECELEBRY HAIR TRANSPLANTCELEBRY PLASTIC SURGERYCELEBRY LEATHER JACKETBODY SHAPER SEARCH FOR: GAY MALE ATHLETGAY GOLFERS LIST: PGA PLAYERS, PROS, AND COLLEGE ATHLET

For a variety of reasons, n be extremely hard for profsnal athlet to e out as LGBTQ+ their personal one, sports are largely domated by straight cis men who have been notorly homophobic and transphobic acrdg to numero stori om LGBTQ+ athlet.

"Now is a good time for me bee the Commonwealth Gam is a month's time, and there's gog to be a lot of people watchg that, and there are so many untri the Commonwealth where beg gay is illegal. The 25-year-old athlete and former Richmond Flyg Squirrels player revealed to his fans and followers that while he is no longer playg for the team, which is part of the San Francis Giants system, he is thankful for the time he had and isn't givg up on his love of baseball, pecially as an out, gay man. The Asie Olympic gold medalist and gby player me out as a trans man an Augt vio for the Bgham Cup's Internatnal Summ Tacklg Transphobia and Homophobia Sport event.

JAGUARS ASSOCIATE STRENGTH ACH OUT AS GAY A FIRST FOR US-BASED PRO LEAGU

The Sttish pro footballer and Gala Fairyan Rovers player publicly me out as gay a September terview posted to his football club's official webse.

Per Outsports, Maxen is the “first publicly out male ach a major Amerin men’s pro sports league, ” wh WNBA ach Curt Miller, who publicly me out to the media as gay 2015, also a publicly out male ach an Amerin profsnal sports league.

When Kansas State offensive tackle and NFL hopeful Stt Frantz me out to the natn as gay last week, he shared that his teammat, to whom he'd e out earlier, had warmly received the news, a sign the most alpha of locker rooms may fally be ready for equaly. Here's a list of players llege and pro ball who have proved you n be gay or bi and still n the KopayRunng back Dave Kopay, who signed wh the San Francis 49ers 1964, would play for five teams before hangg up his jersey 1972.