The gay versn of SI's Swimsu Issue - Outsports

Contents:

• FROM LLEGE SWIMMER TO HIGH SCHOOL ACH, GAY ATHLETE STAYED TE TO HIMSELF
• BEG OUT: GAY SWIM ACH DAVID THIBO PROVIS A SAFE SPACE THE POOL
• TWO GAY SWIMMERS ARE BT IENDS AND EACH OTHER’S ROCK
• THE GAY VERSN OF SI'S SWIMSU ISSUE
• FOR LLEGE SWIMMG ACH, BEG GAY NO LONGER A BIG THG AND THAT’S WHY ’S A GREAT THG
• SWIMMG MA ME GAY

FROM LLEGE SWIMMER TO HIGH SCHOOL ACH, GAY ATHLETE STAYED TE TO HIMSELF

When he asked for the drk, one of the people nearby asked him if he was gay. Apparently orrg beer is straight and orrg hard cir is gay.

BEG OUT: GAY SWIM ACH DAVID THIBO PROVIS A SAFE SPACE THE POOL

Tth was, Dalton was gay — this person jt didn’t know yet and was tryg to make an “nocent” crack.

TWO GAY SWIMMERS ARE BT IENDS AND EACH OTHER’S ROCK

On the latt episo of the Five Rgs To Rule Them All podst, Dalton talks about life and beg gay and around ele levels of swimmg.

Not surprisg, wh all of the travel and movg around, he’s found hard to make gay iends and fd a boyiend.

From llege swimmer to high school ach, gay athlete stayed te to himself. ‘The most challengg part of beg gay has actually been enuragg myself to be more open wh others, ’ MacJilton Lewis wr.

THE GAY VERSN OF SI'S SWIMSU ISSUE

When Brish diver Tom Daley announced he was gay, ronated wh me. However, after that first nversatn wh my mom, was not as if the floodgat opened and I began tellg everyone my life that I was gay. Even though I uld sense I was a supportive environment at Cleveland State (where I attend llege and petively swam), was not until my sophomore year that I was ready to open up to one of my teammat.

The most challengg part of beg gay has still been enuragg myself to be more open wh others.

FOR LLEGE SWIMMG ACH, BEG GAY NO LONGER A BIG THG AND THAT’S WHY ’S A GREAT THG

I unrstand the importance of lovg myself for who I am: an athlete, a ach, a son, a brother and a iend — who happens to be gay. For Canadian swimmer David Thibo, g out as gay 2017 was not the end of his journey but the start of a new chapter.

I was nvced that I uld not be a gay athlete, so I qu before I me out. We’re two swimmers and bt iends, both llege, who happen to be gay. Before we tell you the story of how two gay swimmers helped each other e out, we want to share some background about each of .

SWIMMG MA ME GAY

I was always good at hidg my emotns and phg my feelgs ep si, so I had no problem hidg that I was gay until high school. On top of everythg else I was a petive swimmer, a sport known for beg “more gay” bee my uniform was a ty piece of fabric jt large enough to ver “my stuff” and I went to a private, Catholic high school.

I was aaid of tellg my teammat that I was gay bee I feared they would look at me differently or my guy iends would distance themselv. The hard part was the lonely, dark place I put myself when faced wh the realy that people knew I was gay. I’ve had such hard time g to terms wh my sexualy bee I was sred that my fay would hate me bee homosexualy is a s.

At my school, swimmg was nsired a “gay” sport bee of our ltle Speedos.