Le Prokop, NHL prospect, out as gay a first for the league | CNN

Contents:

• TOP 10 ATHLET WHO ARE RUMORED TO BE GAY
• REPORT: NHL ACTUALLY HAS HAD HUNDREDS OF OPENLY GAY PLAYERS FOR YEARS
• LE PROKOP COM OUT AS GAY AND MAK NHL HISTORY
• NHL PROSPECT LE PROKOP OUT AS GAY, A FIRST FOR THE LEAGUE
• GAY MALE HOCKEY PLAYERS ARE G OUT DROV, AND CHANGG THE SPORT’S CULTURE
• OPENLY GAY NHL PROSPECT LE PROKOP CALLS OUT LACK OF 'INCLN' AFTER PLAYERS BOYTT PRI NIGHT
• PROKOP REFLECTS ON YEAR SCE G OUT AS GAY
• AN INCLIVE NHL AWAS S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER
• GAY HOCKEY PLAYER: NHL HYPOCRIL TO NMN BRENDAN LEIPSIC WHOUT CHANGG CULTURE
• WHY THERE ARE FEW OPENLY GAY ATHLET IN MEN'S PROFSNAL SPORTS
• NASHVILLE PREDATORS PROSPECT LE PROKOP SAYS HE IS GAY, HOP LIVG 'THENTIC LIFE' HELPS NHL REER
• NHL PROSPECT LE PROKOP ANNOUNC HE'S GAY
• AN N.H.L. PROSPECT IS THE FIRST SUCH PLAYER TO ANNOUNCE HE’S GAY
• PREDATORS’ PROSPECT MAK HISTORY AS FIRST GAY PLAYER UNR CONTRACT
• 'NHL IS READY FOR GAY PLAYER,' SAYS PATRICK BURKE

TOP 10 ATHLET WHO ARE RUMORED TO BE GAY

In fact, as society is now much more open to people no matter their orientatn, we have seen a ton more athlet, both active and retired, e out and adm that they are homosexuals, and 's absolutely a great thg. This list will look at some of the most high profile exampl of pro athlet who have had mors about beg gay surroundg them, but aga, none of those are nfirmed and even if they were nfirmed, they would be somethg to celebrate. Qutns about Aikman's sexual orientatn have been around for s and the mor was started by Skip Bayls, when, his book, he stated that Troy Aikman might be gay.

Soccer midfielr Robbie Rogers g out as homosexual, reports revealed Friday that the Natnal Hockey League has fact had hundreds of openly gay athlet throughout s Lnch Outreach Program To Provi Troubled Teens Wh Asslt RiflOffEnglishSourc nfirmed that gay players have actually been credibly mon the NHL for s, and the league is only now beg creded wh layg the groundwork for the growg acceptance of homosexualy profsnal sports.

“It’s obvly a watershed moment when a player om the NBA announc he’s gay, but most people fet about Montreal Canadiens wger Steve Shutt, who me out back 1972, ” said hockey historian Hank Crerand, notg that Shutt was the first of many gay NHL players to reveal their homosexualy. ”Sce s origal ceptn 1917 through to the “Origal 6” era of the ’40s, ’50s, and ’60s, the NHL has reportedly had a long history of gay players and was far ahead of s time batg prejudice and tolerance toward homosexualy wh locker rooms and stadiums.

REPORT: NHL ACTUALLY HAS HAD HUNDREDS OF OPENLY GAY PLAYERS FOR YEARS

“Thgs really started to take a turn for the better when Mike Ezne beme the first openly gay pta of an Olympic hockey team to w a gold medal, leadg the U. ”“That kiss really changed a lot of attus wh the hockey muny, ” Crerand Probert, who played 16 seasons for the Detro Red Wgs and Chigo Blackhawks, reportedly had a huge impact on the league as hockey’s “Homo Enforcer, ” timidatg the petn and pummelg opponents wh vic punch. Crerand told reporters that Probert was the “most feared queer” the NHL and transformed the perceptn that a homosexual hockey player uldn’t be a gay goon.

Crerand strsed, however, that no athlete was more fluential to the gay rights movement than Wayne Gretzky, wily regard as the greatt gay player NHL history. “Number 99 pletely changed the landspe for gay athlet the NHL, pecially mercially, and no one had a greater impact on young gay hockey players around the world.

Louis, Rick Nash, Ryan Miller, Patrik Elias, Stephen Gnta, Clarke MacArthur, Patrick Dwyer, Mike Rupp, Carey Price, Dt Brown, Zbynek Michalek, Brad Richards, Derek Dorsett, Brian Boyle, David Krejci, Shea Weber, Derick Brassard, Sergei Gonchar, Bran Holtby, Brandon Dubsky, Stephane Robidas, Col Greeng, Jam Reimer, Kev Poul, Brandon Pst, Travis Hamonic, Mart Brour, Joakim Anrsson, Vcent Levalier, Josh Green, Daniel Aledsson, Joe Thornton, Arron Asham, Alexanr Steen, Michael Del Zotto, Patrice Bergeron, Matt Duchene, Teddy Purcell, Michael Ryr, Tomas Fleischmann, Lars Eller, Daniel Wnik, Jyri Niemi, Mikhail Grigorenko, Evanr Kane, David Back, Jiri Tlty, Sam Gagner, David Dharnais, Cody Franson, Steve Ott, Dt Byfuglien, Casey Cizikas, Daniel Sed, Brian Campbell, Ilya Kovalch, Chris Neil, Patrick Sharp, Jaromir Jagr, Hal Gill, Mark Grdano, Marc-Andre Flry, Ray Whney, Mike Cammalleri, Lee Stempniak, Jam van Riemsdyk, Mart Hanzal, David Clarkson, Vny Prospal, Taylor Hall, Ryan Getzlaf, Andrew Ladd, Alexanr Sem, Max Pacretty, Brenn Dillon, Jonathan Toews, Jordan Eberle, Marian Hossa, Frans Nielsen, Alex Galcheny, Bobby Ryan, Manny Malhotra, Mike Fisher, Bryan Ltle, Nail Yakupov, Patrick Marle, Jonathan Huber, Tyler Ennis, Craig Anrson, Saku Koivu, Shane Doan, Ryan Whe, Blake Wheeler, Evgeni Nabokov, Mark Fraser, Jeff Carter, Nicklas Backstrom, Michael Grabner, Brendan Gallagher, Tomas Plekanec, John Tavar, Taylor Pyatt, Alex Burrows, Rene Bourque, Jason Chimera, Jofey Lupul, Corey Perry, Brad Stuart, Jt Williams, Matt Cullen, Marian Gaborik, Patrik Berglund, Brian Elltt, Josh Hardg, Daniel Cleary, Roberto Luongo, Nazem Kadri, Zach Parise, Eric Staal, Jordan Staal, Marc Staal, Jared Staal, Steven Stamkos, and Ryan Kler all g out as gay recent years. Acrdg to experts, the league’s progrsive stance toward homosexualy also paved the way for the 2013 Philalphia Flyers, the only profsnal sports roster history to be prised entirely of gay players. “It’s nice to see the rt of the sports world begng to tch up to the NHL when to gay tolerance, ” said ESPN hockey analyst Barry Melrose, himself openly gay sce the early 1990s.

LE PROKOP COM OUT AS GAY AND MAK NHL HISTORY

”“But whout a doubt, none of this would have been possible whout the unbelievable altism and open-mdns of the NHL fan base, ” add Melrose, “It’s far easier for players to be tly fortable their own sk knowg so many fans are gay too.

Natnal Hockey League prospect Le Prokop me out as gay via a heartfelt statement to fans Monday, sayg he hoped would improve gay visibily wh the hockey muny. “I hope that sharg who I am I n help other people see that gay people are wele the hockey muny, as we work to make sure that hockey is tly for everyone, ” he wrote.

NHL PROSPECT LE PROKOP OUT AS GAY, A FIRST FOR THE LEAGUE

Prokop hasn’t played an NHL game yet, but if he do, he’ll jo que a small club: There have only been two openly gay active players the four largt US sports leagu – Carl Nassib of the NFL’s Las Vegas Rairs, who me out last month, and Jason Colls, an NBA veteran who me out 2013 and retired the followg season. This n evolve to lastg homophobic attus or e gay players to hi their sexualy om their teammat, said Erik Denison, a behavral scientist and lead rearcher on the Sport Incln Project at Monash Universy Atralia, a June terview wh CNN. Durg the quiet of the sprgtime sports shutdowns, two well-known NHL players, Stanley Cup champn Dt Penner and wger Brendan Leipsic, were ught postg horribly homophobic and misogynistic msag on social media.

This year alone, longtime NCAA Divisn 1 ref Brian Hicks announced he was gay; player and referee Gordie Mchard me out; pro announcer Jonathan Kliment penned his g-out story. After a lifetime of hearg gay sults the rk — opponents were always lled “cksuckers” or “fuckg fags” — Wton cid to e out to his teammat a heartfelt speech.

GAY MALE HOCKEY PLAYERS ARE G OUT DROV, AND CHANGG THE SPORT’S CULTURE

20-year-old Prokop, the first openly gay player wh a ntract unr the NHL, penned a thoughtful msage about players the league who have opposed wearg pri jerseys or g rabow stick tape durg their teams' annual pri events.

OPENLY GAY NHL PROSPECT LE PROKOP CALLS OUT LACK OF 'INCLN' AFTER PLAYERS BOYTT PRI NIGHT

The play-by-play broadster for Uti, the New Jersey Devils' Amerin Hockey League affiliate, publicly me out as gay October 2021, fluenced by Prokop's cisn. 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.

PROKOP REFLECTS ON YEAR SCE G OUT AS 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.

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. I have heard the explanatns, rangg om the ludicro (there are no “gays” the league) to the simplistic (the game’s hateful, toxic male culture driv gay players unrground). I believe, however, that won’t be long before the NHL has openly gay players lacg up their skat and others workg the ranks of management and hockey operatns.

NHL missner Gary Bettman regnized this 2016 when he spoke about the league’s partnership wh the You Can Play anizatn, workg to dismantle barriers met by gay athlet sport. If and when that happens, believe me, that person will have the full support of the missner’s office” (om “Gary Bettman says NHL is ready for s first openly gay player, ” The Chigo Tribune, 29/06/2016) Commissner Gary Bettman (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)Today, hockey mt reflect the changg valu of s fan base.

AN INCLIVE NHL AWAS S FIRST OPENLY GAY PLAYER

Fans of the future will not accept homophobia the sports and entertament products they Are No Gay Players the NHL.., there are now and always have been gay players the NHL. Nohels, acrdg to a 2017 Gallup study based on 340, 000 terviews, the percentage of Amerin adults intifyg as lbian, gay, bisexual or transgenr 2017 was 4. That means that, over the years, there have probably been several hundred gay NHLers, all of whom prumably kept their sexual orientatn hidn om the still sist that, notwhstandg the odds, there are simply no gay men playg the NHL.

Mark Tewksbury, an Olympic gold medalist swimmg at the 1992 Olympic gam, a former chef missn of Canada’s 2012 Summer Olympic team and a proment gay activist sports for many years, sffs at that ia. Canadian Olympian Mark Tewksbury on Gay Players the NHLAsked a Canadian Broadstg Corporatn terview why there are no gay players the NHL, he uld barely nta a lgh. One of whom was Glenn Burke, who me out while he was playg for the Oakland Athletics back 1977, and who said, “They n’t ever say now that a gay man n’t play the majors, bee I’m a gay man and I ma .

Speakg of the absence of openly gay players the NHL, Tampa Bay Lightng goaltenr Anrs Nilsson, a proment supporter of the LGBT+ muny, said, “When people say there are three to four gay players on each [NHL] team, I say no, absolutely not. ” He further explaed that if he had been gay, playg as a teen, he would have qu bee of the homophobic slurs on the ice, the drsg rooms and the stands – all over the hockey Nilsson as an Ottawa Senator (Js Starr/The Hockey Wrers)So, what’s up wh the NHL?

GAY HOCKEY PLAYER: NHL HYPOCRIL TO NMN BRENDAN LEIPSIC WHOUT CHANGG CULTURE

While there may be very few gay players the league or perhaps none at any given moment, ’s clear that over the s, there mt have been many skatg Hockey Culture to Blame?

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

He explaed, “There’s this ia that to be a hockey player, you have to be macho, hyper-mascule, a ‘bro’ tough guy…And the language and attus and actns wh the sport almost give the ia that if you’re gay, you’re ls than the thgs. You’re weak, you’re soft, you’re effemate” (om “Culture of Hockey: Q&A wh Brock McGillis, the first openly gay pro hockey player, ” The Hockey News, 04/12/2019) slurs are mon hockey om midget hoe leagu to major junr and llege.

(om “Hockey and Homophobia: We are All Complic, ” The Globe and Mail, 21/04/2016)McGillis poted to Mark Crawford’s one-month spensn 2019 as an example of the anti-gay culture that still permeat the league. Sce 2016, they’ve been an official partner of You Can Play, -found by Patrick Burke, a sut for the Philalphia Flyers and son of renowned hockey executive, broadster and gay rights activist Brian Burke, now vice print of hockey operatns for the Ptsburgh Pengus. ; he died a r accint You Can Play OrganizatnThe NHL also tablished the “Hockey is for Everyone” iative that the sport – and the league’s global fluence – to provi a posive environment for players, fai and fans of every race, lour, relign, natnal orig, genr, age, sexual orientatn, soc-enomic stat and for those wh players are also proment the effort to bat homophobia hockey.

Boston Bs star Brad Marchand took a stand agast a homophobic slur directed at him on Twter 2017 and said of his fellow players, “Guys would accept , no qutn (if a gay player me out). It’s a Different Culture That Stops Gay Players From Comg OutWhile would be hard to argue that the NHL has rid self entirely of homophobia, there n be no doubt that the blatant variety is no longer tolerated the league. And ’s why a gay player would feel ’s bt jt to stay the closet rather than bee a poster boy for gay rights at the expense of their team’s foc on wng champnships.

NASHVILLE PREDATORS PROSPECT LE PROKOP SAYS HE IS GAY, HOP LIVG 'THENTIC LIFE' HELPS NHL REER

That go for anybody who is the story of openly gay players the NHL has yet to be wrten, there are signs emergg on the periphery of the league that one day soon will be told.

In 2019, a 17-year-old Yanic Duplsis was drafted by the Dmmondville Voltigrs to bee the first openly gay player to be drafted to the Quebec Major Junr Hockey League (QMJHL) – a key steppg stone to the NHL. Guillme Latendrse as an Ottawa Senator (Michael Miller/Wikimedia Commons)Duplsis echo McGillis the belief that the key to gag wir acceptance is tn and puttg a human face on beg gay. Not only is the right thg to do, but the game will suffer if those bridg aren’t Nilsson summed up bt by sayg, “What happens is that we will lose gay players, who might otherwise have been the next Sidney Crosby or Connor McDavid or Wayne Gretzky.

And some fai wh strong feelgs about thgs might feel that, regardls if their son is straight or gay, he shouldn’t play hockey bee they don’t want him that harsh culture where ach and players ll each other all sorts of thgs. Last month, McGillis spoke wh Outsports about the importance of llg out hate-speech hockey, explag why he chose to highlight two-time Stanley Cup champn Dt Penner’s vile nspiracy-filled homophobic Twter timele.

NHL PROSPECT LE PROKOP ANNOUNC HE'S GAY

Former NHL biser Brandon Pst recently went on a Twter tira about “reverse racism” and star Bs forward David Pastrnak was ught g “you’re gay” as an sult on his Twch stream, though he did tch himself and apologize. 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.

AN N.H.L. PROSPECT IS THE FIRST SUCH PLAYER TO ANNOUNCE HE’S GAY

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. "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.

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. As sure as our Third Rock From The Sun is a spng, round orb, like a blue 10-p bowlg ball, gay men wh wi gaps their teeth and ill manners have skated, blocked pucks and bare-knuckled one another the pla's premier puck mune.

PREDATORS’ PROSPECT MAK HISTORY AS FIRST GAY PLAYER UNR CONTRACT

Whereas players om each of the other major men's pro sports enterpris North Ameri have stepped forward to jo the gay/bisexual roll ll—the majory dog so post-reer—not a soul among the thoands of men listed on NHL rosters more than 100 years has outed himself as part of the LGBT(etc. Not even Vegas sports books uld provi a morng le on such an improbable circumstance, bee the notn that there's never been a gay/bisexual NHL player is as believable as the Tooth Fairy leavg a dollar bill unr the Easter Bunny's pillow.

No surprise, therefore, to learn that Kyle Beach was the target of homophobic tntg and ridicule by members of the Chigo Blackhawks at trag mp 2010, snt months after rmg club officials that he stood before them as a victim of sexual asslt, the culpr beg then-vio ach Brad Aldrich.

'NHL IS READY FOR GAY PLAYER,' SAYS PATRICK BURKE

There have been mors for years the NHL league about Sean Avery’s sexualy, but he has always vehemently nied , Sean even went as far as to “date” a beard girliend (Elisha Cuthbert), who he was never even remotely to, to ver up him receivg backlash om his NHL teammat and ternally the NHL for beg gay. “… Sean thks that by havg an openly gay relatnship wh another pubic figure such as Andy will give him the tle of “NHL’s first openly gay athlete datg a BRAVO Executive” followg him and people not notice him for anythg else. Avery was the first NHL player to speak out favor of marriage equaly New York and was the talyst for discsns about gay athlet that have ntued wh mpaigns like “You Can Play.

” Avery has also been the target of gay slurs durg gam, cludg an famo one om Wayne Simmonds of the has appeared on Bravo’s programmg for years, and even ma a facto retirement claratn on Cohen’s show. ""I hope that sharg who I am I n help other people see that gay people are wele the hockey muny, as we work to make sure that hockey is tly for everyone, " Prokop wrote.