The gay versn of SI's Swimsu Issue - Outsports

Contents:

• 5 GAY ATHLET WHO ARE OUT AND PROUD
• TWO GAY SWIMMERS ARE BT IENDS AND EACH OTHER’S ROCK
• ATHLET WHO ARE GAY
• THE GAY VERSN OF SI'S SWIMSU ISSUE
• MCULAR GAY MEN STOCK PHOTOS AND IMAG
• GAY ATHLETE G KENWORTHY AND BUTTS GALORE HIGHLIGHT ESPN BODY ISSUE
• WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS
• GAY BOYS PLAY TEAM SPORTS AT HALF THE RATE OF THEIR PEERS
• JAGS' MAXEN IS FIRST MALE AMERIN PRO SPORTS ACH TO E OUT AS GAY

5 GAY ATHLET WHO ARE OUT AND PROUD

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. I'm a footballer and I'm gay.

"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.

In a September terview wh USA Today, 25-year-old mor league baseball player beme the only active baseball profsnal to be out as gay! Natnal Hockey League prospect Le Prokop me out as gay July, the first active player the league to e out. "I am proud to publicly tell everyone that I am gay, " he wrote a heartfelt msage on social media.

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

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.

I jt wanted to take a quick moment to say that I'm gay.

ATHLET WHO ARE GAY

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. "He wanted everyone to know he was "still the same Colton everybody met on TV" and is "proud to be gay. Hiltz had prevly e out as gay while llege and has been a visible and affirmg prence for gay athlet the past.

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.

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. He ially feared negative stereotyp about gay male athlet but threw those ncerns asi after his two-tle performance at the U. Derrick Gordon, the first openly gay player Divisn 1 llege basketball acced the NBA of not givg him a fair shot to try out bee of his sexualy.

THE GAY VERSN OF SI'S SWIMSU ISSUE

“Hontly, the NBA is not ready for an openly gay player right now, ” he said. They are showg young, gay athlet that they n be hont and open about who they are and also succeed the sport of their choice. Here are a few gay athlet who have ma a difference sports simply by g out and beg proud to be themselv.

Jason Colls NBA player Jason Colls was drafted by the Hoton Rockets 2001 and played twelve seasons before g out as gay a Sports Illtrated ver story. He said that he chose to wear the jersey number “98” honour of Matthew Shepard who was killed an antigay hate crime 1998. When Colls played his last season the NBA wh the Brooklyn Nets he bee the first publicly gay athlete to play any of the four major North Amerin pro team sports leagu.

Many people believe pro sports to be one of the last areas where homophobia was still proment but Colls g out was a step the right directn for acceptance of gay pro athlet everywhere.

MCULAR GAY MEN STOCK PHOTOS AND IMAG

He also hted that he might be more bisexual than gay, but he don’t feel the need to put a label on . In 2013, Rogers announced his retirement at the age of 25 and also me out as gay a post on his personal blog. “I’m a soccer player, I’m Christian, and I’m gay.

GAY ATHLETE G KENWORTHY AND BUTTS GALORE HIGHLIGHT ESPN BODY ISSUE

Later that year, Rogers me out of retirement and signed wh the Los Angel Galaxy and 2014 he beme the first openly gay male to w a major team pro sports tle the U.

In 2012, he beme the first profsnally active boxer to e out as gay sayg, ”I want to try to be the bt role mol I n be for kids who might look to boxg as a sport and a profsnal reer.

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

I have always been and always will be a proud gay man”.

In 2013, Cz was one of the first ducte to the brand new Natnal Gay and Lbian Sports Hall of Fame.

Louis Rams the 2014 NFL draft, Michael Sam beme the first publicly gay player to ever be drafted to the NFL. ” Unfortunately Sam didn’t end up makg through the preason and stead signed wh the Montreal Alouett before the 2015 season beg the first publicly gay player the CFL. No out gay player has played a regular season NFL game to date, but thanks to Sam, ’s more of a possibily.

GAY BOYS PLAY TEAM SPORTS AT HALF THE RATE OF THEIR PEERS

We’re two swimmers and bt iends, both llege, who happen to be gay.

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