Openly gay NBA executive Rick Welts elected to Basketball Hall of Fame - Outsports

rick welts gay

Rick Welts, print and CEO of the Phoenix Suns, rocked the NBA and the sportg world when he announced that he is gay. Soon after, he spoke to TIME about the reasong behd his cisn

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AS AN OPENLY GAY PRO SPORTS EXECUTIVE, RICK WELTS, ’75, IS FALLY LIVG HIS TTH

Welts me out as gay 2011, and proceed to lead the Goln State Warrrs through their most succsful ever. * rick welts gay *

An openly gay print of an NBA team stands ntrast to what has been the norm men's major league sports the U.

11, 2020, 11:27 PM UTCThe print of the Goln State Warrrs has wed his longtime Welts and Todd Gage were married by San Francis Mayor London Breed her office on Friday, Welts announced on and Gage have been together ne years, Welts said his, who me out as gay 2011, has been an stmental part of the Warrrs' succs over the last ne years, helpg the team appear five straight NBA Fals, w three openly gay print of an NBA team stands ntrast to what has been the norm men's major league sports the U. In 2018, Coll Mart, a soccer player for Mnota Uned announced on Twter that he was gay, which ma him the only openly gay male player North Amerin sports leagu.

RICK WELTS, LEGENDARY GAY NBA EXECUTIVE, ANNOUNC RETIREMENT

Raj Mathai ss down wh Warrrs Print, Rick Welts, the hight rankg openly gay man Amerin sports. * rick welts gay *

Welts, the print and CEO of the Natnal Basketball Ball Associatn’s Phoenix Suns, May beme the send person men’s profsnal basketball history to e out openly as a gay man. “My imprsns of gay people me through the media, ” he explas. The young fellow liked sports and was gay.

NBA Commissner David Stern disclosed a New York Tim terview that he had known for years that Welts was gay but felt he uldn’t acknowledge .

Welts’ lleagu profsnal basketball have been supportive, and many have said they are happy that he fally was able to talk openly about beg gay.

GAY NBA TEAM PRINT RICK WELTS JT MARRIED HIS LONGTIME BOYIEND

Welts, the gay former print of the Phoenix Suns and the Goln State Warrrs, will speak and be a pallbearer for his lifelong iend's private memorial service. * rick welts gay *

In addn to beg a pro sports executive who happens to be gay, Welts also lls himself “an unabashed Seattle lover. Phoenix Suns CEO Rick Welts, ’75, who May beme the first profsnal sports team executive to e out as gay, is jt the latt a le of high-profile UW alumni who have had the urage to do so. Attorney for the Wtern District of Washgton was the first openly gay U.

The former UW nng back 1975 was the first pro athlete om a major team sport to announce he was gay. The former Hky basketball player is vice print of operatns for the Seattle Storm and is openly gay.

OPENLY GAY NBA EXECUTIVE RICK WELTS WED HIS LONGTIME PARTNER TODD GAGE

Welts is the first openly gay man ducted to the Hall of Fame. * rick welts gay *

Prevly, he worked for the Phoenix Suns, beg the first NBA executive to publicly e out as gay.

RICK WELTS ON BEG GAY THE NBA

* rick welts gay *

At Outsports, we’ll most remember Welts for his unparalleled role as an openly gay role mol the sports bs world. When Welts me out, he told the New York Tim he wanted to “pierce the silence that envelops the subject of homosexualy men’s team sports. Sports executive to publicly intify as a gay man, has tied the knot.

WARRRS ADD FIRST OPENLY GAY EXEC TO FRONT OFFICE

The first openly gay executive major pro sports, Welts is retirg as Warrrs print, leavg a massive mark on the NBA and beyond. * rick welts gay *

Women’s natnal soccer team pta Megan Rapoe and WNBA star Sue Bird wh Goln State Warrrs' Shaw via Getty ImagSce then, Welts has led the Warrrs to three champnship ws and five NBA fals number of openly LGBTQ sports officials clus Erik Braverman, who me out as gay 2015 and serv as the senr vice print of marketg, munitns and broadstg for the Los Angel Dodgers. Quickly she learned that, by then, the NBA and WNBA had veloped a mutual culture of cln for gay and lbian people. So when two gay men — Drew Tagliabue wh PFLAG and Ken Mehlman wh GLSEN — approached her about embracg the LGBTQ muny, Behrens was all ears.

OPENLY GAY NBA EXECUTIVE RICK WELTS ELECTED TO BASKETBALL HALL OF FAME

It was an ia prented by GLSEN — a PSA about stampg out the pejorative term “that’s so gay” — that piqued her tert.

So 2011 the NBA fund and shot a PSA wh Grant Hill and Jared Dudley talkg about the need to elimate “sually homophobic” language om sports and society.

Days later, Welts — then the Print and CEO of the Suns — me out publicly as gay. While he hadn’t seen an overt embrace of gay people, he felt .

WARRRS GAY COO WELTS TO RETIRE

Rick Welts and Jason Colls, two gay trailblazers the NBA, are both honore on the 2023 Outsports Power 100. As Welts built a Hall of Fame reer the NBA ont office, as well as wh the Suns and Goln State Warrrs, his secret — he was gay wh a boyiend — stuck wh him. Gays and lbians the early days of the WNBA.

Those NBA teams brought attus about gays and lbians that were at tim fearful their prence the WNBA might sre away non-LGBTQ fans.

RICK WELTS ON COMG OUT AND THE NBA'S GAY 'SILENCE'

Shortly after, Lippard and Welts — who had heard about each other whispers about gay men the league — fed a iendship, and Welts beme an important mentor for Lippard.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* RICK WELTS GAY

As an openly gay pro sports executive, Rick Welts, ’75, is fally livg his tth | UW Magaze — Universy of Washgton Magaze .

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