"If there's a gay player the locker room, nothg happens" - Diego Schwartzman, the latt star to support the LGBTQ movement

Contents:

• THERE ARE NO PUBLICLY OUT GAY PRO MALE TENNIS PLAYERS AND NOBODY REALLY KNOWS WHY
• 5 ACTIVE TENNIS PLAYERS WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY OR BISEXUAL, FT. DARIA KASATKA & SAMANTHA STOSUR
• SI:AM NEWSLETTER \N IN-DEPTH ANALYSIS, \N UNRIVALED ACCS. \N GET SPORTS ILLUSTRATED'S \N BT STORI EVERY WEEKDAY. \N SIGN UP NOW \N ","TYPE":"PHXCTOMCOMPONENT","BREAKPOTCLASS":["NOT-SIZE-A","NOT-SIZE-B"]}]},"DISABLERIGHTRAIL":FALSE,"DISABLEABOVETHEFOLDAD":FALSE},"VIEWMETA":{"SHOWLIMEDSEFOOTER":FALSE,"SUPPRSDISPLAYADS":FALSE,"DISABLESEFOOTER":FALSE,"SUPPRSCONTENTREMENDATNS":FALSE,"PROMOTWTER":{"TEASER":NULL,"TLE":NULL,"IMAGEID":NULL},"DISABLESEHEAR":FALSE,"PROMOFACEBOOK":{"TEASER":NULL,"TLE":NULL,"IMAGEID":NULL}},"ANALYTICSMOL":{"TLE":"MAILBAG: DISCSG HOMOSEXUALY, HOMOPHOBIA ON THE ATP, WTA TOURS","EXCLIVECONTENTTYPE":"METERED","SANIZEDTLE":"MAILBAG DISCSG HOMOSEXUALY HOMOPHOBIA ON THE ATP WTA TOURS","PAGETYPE":"ARTICLE PAGE","MAVENPAGETYPE":"ARTICLE","SECTNPATH":"TENNIS","PARENTSECTNNAME":"TENNIS","THORNAME":"JON WERTHEIM","VIOAUTHORNAME":"","VIOTLE":"","PUBLITNQUARTER":"2015Q3","TRACKEDRICHTERMNAM":"","ORIGALPUBLISHDATE":"2015-07-29","TRACKEDEXTENDATTRIBUT":"","THOR":"TM-CI025141E450002595","CHARACTERCOUNTBYBREAKPOT":{"A":9611,"B":9671,"C":9681,"D":9681}}},"MENTSENABLED":TE,"K":"JON WERTHEIM DISCS SERENA WILLIAMS, MEDIA'S VERAGE OF GAY MEN THE ATP AND MORE HIS WEEKLY MAILBAG.\N","DISQID":"1CD9A15C-0282-11EA-AAF2-02A0FA737E54","ISCANVAS":TE,"PRIMARYIMAGE":{"ISREADONLYCONTENT":FALSE,"TLE":"","ATTRIBUTN":{"SOURCENAME":"ALEX SMH/ATP VIA GETTY IMAG"},"FORMAT":"G","BYT":132304,"PRIMARYPHOTOID":"CI02558BA360092781","CREATEDTIMTAMP":"2019-11-08T23:43:51Z","PRIMARYCONTENTSEID":"CS024F19A9100026AE","HEIGHT":540,"CLOUDARYVERSNID":1573256630,"PUBLICID":"MTY4MTK0MDK0MDK4ODG0NDGX","OBJECTTYPE":"CONTENTPHOTO","WIDTH":960,"MIGRATNID":"PHOTO:9714521-9714266","CREATEDPRCIPALID":"UP017CC6ED8D32860E","ID":"CI02558BA360092781","PRIMARYSEID":"CS024F19A9100026AE"},"PRIMARYIMAGEID":"CI02558BA360092781","PRIMARYSECTNIDS":["CI0250EC64F000276C"],"PROMOTLE":"MAILBAG: HOMOSEXUALY ON THE ATP TOUR; SERENA'S GRAND SLAM CHASE","SECTNIDS":[["CI0250EC64F000276C"]],"SLUG":"MAILBAG-HOMOSEXUALY-ATP-TOUR-SERENA-WILLIAMS-GRAND-SLAM","TEASER":"JON WERTHEIM DISCS SERENA WILLIAMS, MEDIA'S VERAGE OF GAY MEN THE ATP AND MORE HIS WEEKLY MAILBAG.\N","HASGALLERY":FALSE,"ASSOCIATEDRICHTERMS":[{"ID":"CI025569C6C0002511","OBJECTTYPE":"CONTENTRICHTERM","ORIGALPUBLITNTIMTAMP":"1996-11-01T10:00:00Z","PATH":NULL,"PUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2010-11-01T10:00:00Z","TLE":"WERTHEIM MAILBAG","MENTSENABLED":TE,"DISQID":"AF2BF090-013E-11EA-B22E-02C8A5C5E728","SLUG":"WERTHEIM-MAILBAG"},{"ID":"CI0254E188E0062511","OBJECTTYPE":"CONTENTRICHTERM","ORIGALPUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2017-01-01T00:00:00Z","PATH":NULL,"PUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2017-12-01T10:00:00Z","TLE":"JON WERTHEIM","MENTSENABLED":TE,"DISQID":"616BD5D8-FC2B-11E9-9445-02C8A5C5E728","SLUG":"JON-WERTHEIM"},{"ID":"CI02554D6090022580","OBJECTTYPE":"CONTENTRICHTERM","ORIGALPUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2005-04-01T10:00:00Z","PATH":NULL,"PUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2002-04-01T10:00:00Z","TLE":"SERENA WILLIAMS STEFFI GRAF","MENTSENABLED":TE,"DISQID":"D87BAD3A-002F-11EA-ADAB-023FC85574E0","SLUG":"SERENA-WILLIAMS-STEFFI-GRAF"},{"ID":"CI0250EC64F000276C","OBJECTTYPE":"CONTENTRICHTERM","ORIGALPUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2019-09-13T21:27:40Z","PATH":"/TENNIS","PUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2019-09-13T21:27:40Z","TLE":"TENNIS","MENTSENABLED":TE,"DISQID":"51C02BCE-D66D-11E9-92D2-02A9A119B604","SLUG":"TENNIS"},{"ID":"CI025583F960042580","OBJECTTYPE":"CONTENTRICHTERM","ORIGALPUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2014-10-01T10:00:00Z","PATH":NULL,"PUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2004-07-01T10:00:00Z","TLE":"2015 OPEN","MENTSENABLED":TE,"DISQID":"8595BE8E-0238-11EA-BFA7-02C8A5C5E728","SLUG":"2015--OPEN"},{"ID":"CI02554E1390002511","OBJECTTYPE":"CONTENTRICHTERM","ORIGALPUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2000-04-01T10:00:00Z","PATH":NULL,"PUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2015-04-01T10:00:00Z","TLE":"SERENA WILLIAMS GRAND SLAM","MENTSENABLED":TE,"DISQID":"8425A494-0036-11EA-A72B-02C8A5C5E728","SLUG":"SERENA-WILLIAMS-GRAND-SLAM"},{"ID":"CI025588EE70022781","OBJECTTYPE":"CONTENTRICHTERM","ORIGALPUBLITNTIMTAMP":"2014-03-01T10:00:00Z","PATH":NULL,"PUBLITNTIMTAMP":"1996-08-01T10:00:00Z","TLE":"SERENA SLAM","MENTSENABLED":TE,"DISQID":"CD2E2386-0267-11EA-906A-02072F9FE470","SLUG":"SERENA-SLAM"}]}MAILBAG: DISCSG HOMOSEXUALY, HOMOPHOBIA ON THE ATP, WTA TOURS
• THERE WILL BE NO OUT GAY MALE TENNIS PLAYERS AT THE U.S. OPEN, YET AGA
• THE GAY TENNIS PLAYERS SMASHG DOWN BARRIERS AS WIMBLEDON 2023 GETS UNRWAY
• ATHLET WHO ARE GAY
• "IF THERE'S A GAY PLAYER THE LOCKER ROOM, NOTHG HAPPENS" - DIEGO SCHWARTZMAN, THE LATT STAR TO SUPPORT THE LGBTQ MOVEMENT
• TOP NAM COME IN SUPPORT OF OPENLY GAY PLAYERS ON THE MEN’S TOUR
• TENNIS' LAST TABOO: WHY NO OPENLY GAY MALE PLAYERS?
• WHY ARE THERE NO OPENLY GAY PLAYERS ELE MEN'S TENNIS?
• FRZ SAYS OPENLY GAY PLAYER WOULD BE ACCEPTED ON ATP TOUR

THERE ARE NO PUBLICLY OUT GAY PRO MALE TENNIS PLAYERS AND NOBODY REALLY KNOWS WHY

As a former men’s llegiate tennis player and openly gay member of my team, this qutn nagged at me as I attend the monumental first ever Pri event at the U. As a former llegiate tennis player and gay man, this event stck a particularly sensive chord for me.

After all of the homophobia I have personally experienced sports, the panelists and the packed dience gave me so much hope for the future of cln sports.

The trailblazer for gay visibily on the ATP tour scribed himself durg the panel discsn as “an anx guy and an anx tennis player, ” statg that his disfort wh his sexual orientatn throughout his life was a signifint ntributor to his anxiety.

5 ACTIVE TENNIS PLAYERS WHO HAVE E OUT AS GAY OR BISEXUAL, FT. DARIA KASATKA & SAMANTHA STOSUR

To me, the fact that Vahaly was even able to make on tour as a closeted gay man the 2000s mak him que an anomaly. The days, top players Roger Ferer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray have all publicly stated that they would wele an out gay man to the ATP.

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While we now celebrate Kg for her acplishments as a gay rights activist, the sacrific she had to make and terrors that she endured for wantg to be her thentic self after beg outed towards the end of her profsnal tennis reer – nearly 40 years ago – are unjtifiable. Combe that wh gay and bisexual men reprentg a signifintly smaller portn of the populatn than heterosexual men, and the odds of havg one of makg through the ranks growg up and currently beg a profsnal tennis player are slim, no matter how welg players such as Ferer, Djokovic and Murray are 2019.

There uld be someone makg their way up the rankgs junrs right now, who hopefully will not be terred om tennis for beg a gay or bisexual man, who will see events such as the U. On a prsg note, the event will once aga have no out male players, not a surprise sce there are no out gay or bi men on the tour. The historic nature of that many out players is not lost on Nick Lee, a former llege tennis player at Vassar who is openly gay and who was stmental pilg this list.

As for the men’s si, we have wrten at length about the absence of out male players (the bt theory as to why me om a gay former llege player), but at least there are LGBTQ alli among top men’s players.

THERE WILL BE NO OUT GAY MALE TENNIS PLAYERS AT THE U.S. OPEN, YET AGA

“I don’t thk ’s really a taboo, but I’ve seen qutns before about why there aren’t any openly gay men on the tour, and I jt wanted to kd of voice my support that general area. The 25-year-old went on to speak about how homosexualy is treated Rsia, before statg that there is nothg easier the world than beg straight. Over the years, several tennis players have announced that they are eher gay or bisexual, wh ins Billie Jean Kg and Marta Navratilova beg the most well-known.

Currently, there are a number of players who have e out as eher gay or bisexual, and here are five of them.

99 Greet Mnen beme well-known for her relatnship wh Alison van Uytvanck, and the two were for long among the most popular gay upl tennis. The sportg world hasn't been ignorant of the discsn, and many athlet the recent past have found themselv fortable enough to e out as gay or lbian. Unlike several other sports, where homosexual athlet have received ser backlash and threats, tennis has been largely open and non-homophobic.

THE GAY TENNIS PLAYERS SMASHG DOWN BARRIERS AS WIMBLEDON 2023 GETS UNRWAY

Raymond has been quoted as sayg: "I me out bee I knew that there would be life after tennis, and beg gay and playg tennis is not a big al.

ATHLET WHO ARE GAY

The lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr, queer, and other non-cisgenr or non-heterosexual (LGBTQ+) muny is prent wh sports worldwi. Many well-known players are openly gay and lbian and have bee champns proudly, makg themselv known to the world. Mart Navratilova me out as homosexual 1981, makg her one of the few tennis players to do so (Source: Getty Imag).

Serena's lendar Grand Slam chase and the GOAT bate; more mail​I read your recent lumn and I thk you ntue to ignore the homophobia behd the scen on the ATP tour. Sce you are a straight man I am not sure you are aware of the homophobia due to your life experience.

You wre about homosexualy and men’s tennis yet your ments jt prove a straight male reporter should not ver this issue! The ATP tour is sellg a product to dienc world wi and they do not want gay men to dispt the product. The bottom le is the ATP tour is siar to the NFL—there are high profile NFL players who everyone knows are gay, yet the media protect the closet s and engenr the lie of beg clive.

"IF THERE'S A GAY PLAYER THE LOCKER ROOM, NOTHG HAPPENS" - DIEGO SCHWARTZMAN, THE LATT STAR TO SUPPORT THE LGBTQ MOVEMENT

(I n also tell you that the top players on the ATP are well aware that gay men make up a not signifint proportn of their fan bas.

In today’s world, LGBT has gaed acceptance of homosexualy, although rejectn still do prevail ral areas. Also, they are the on who have ma a notable announcement to openly lbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual, and transgenr sportspeople. However, the duo separated 2009, and later the 2012-13 season, Colls openly announced himself as gay.

Likewise, he is also a trampolist and, equally important, the first openly gay athlete to w an Olympic gold medal. “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.

TOP NAM COME IN SUPPORT OF OPENLY GAY PLAYERS ON THE MEN’S TOUR

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.

Rogers is a former profsnal soccer player and the first openly gay man to pete a top North Amerin profsnal sports league. Consequently, Robbie me out as gay back 2013, and 2016, he married his longtime boyiend, televisn wrer-producer Greg Berlanti.

The Phenomenon has also been a part of the first-class ducte the Natnal Gay and Lbian Sports Hall of Fame.

TENNIS' LAST TABOO: WHY NO OPENLY GAY MALE PLAYERS?

The most tellg sign of the lack of out gay men profsnal tennis is that the only player wearg any rabow apparel this summer was a straight guy who had to apologize for g gay slurs durg the Olympics. Open starts s two-week n New York, I feel pelled to rehash this prsg statistic: There will once aga be no openly gay male players at one of the sport’s premier events.

WHY ARE THERE NO OPENLY GAY PLAYERS ELE MEN'S TENNIS?

“To be hont, I’m somewhat surprised that there still hasn’t been an out active ATP Tour level player, ” said Nick Lee, a former llege tennis player at Vassar who is openly gay.

The absence of out male pro tennis players is noteworthy a summer that saw the first gay NFL player and gay NHL prospect e out and a rerd number of out LGBTQ Olympians, cludg the most men ever. C., foced on the dividual nature of the sport when tellg Outsports why he thks gay pro tennis players stay closeted. “There are no out gay players on the ATP tour bee most players don’t pick up a racket hop to be a role mol for an entire margalized muny, ” Bradley said.

“The g out procs is so nuanced, and I n image the trici that e wh beg gay and playg a profsnal sport. But the fear that an out player would be hound by the media has been molished by how quickly the Carl Nassib story fad after the Las Vegas Rairs fensive leman me out as gay June. I thk “gay male pro tennis player out” would be a story that quickly fas as an obssn a culture where “breakg news” gets old really fast.

FRZ SAYS OPENLY GAY PLAYER WOULD BE ACCEPTED ON ATP TOUR

Wimbledon 2023 is officially unrway – weather permtg – but spe the All England Club’s all-whe le, there are a handful of out gay players offerg some val rabow LGBTQ+ reprentatn at tennis’s most prtig tournament. Sce the days of trailblazg gay Grand Slam champns Billie Jean Kg and Marta Navratilova, women’s tennis has long provid some of the biggt LGBTQ+ nam sport – and there are currently several players Women’s Tennis Associatn (WTA) tour rryg that torch for a new generatn.

However, the men’s Associatn of Tennis Profsnals (ATP) isn’t currently jt laggg behd, ’s yet to even cross the startg le: There are currently no out gay players on the men’s tour and no profsnal male tennis player has e out publicly the Open Era while still playg the game.