Coll Mart: Never been better time for gay athlet to e out - Outsports

Contents:

• COLL MART IS U.S. SOCCER'S ONLY OPENLY GAY MALE PLAYER, AND HE'S WORKG TO MAKE THE GAME MORE CLIVE FOR FUTURE LGBTQ+ PLAYERS
• COLL MART JT BEME THE ONLY OUT GAY MAN MAJOR LEAGUE SPORTS
• COLL MART, MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER PLAYER, SAYS, 'I'M GAY'
• COLL MART SAYS HE HAD MIXED FEELGS WHEN HIS TEAM FORFEED A GAME AFTER HE WAS LLED AN ANTI-GAY SLUR
• MNOTA UNED'S COLL MART OUT AS GAY

COLL MART IS U.S. SOCCER'S ONLY OPENLY GAY MALE PLAYER, AND HE'S WORKG TO MAKE THE GAME MORE CLIVE FOR FUTURE LGBTQ+ PLAYERS

Moments earlier, an opposg player targeted Mart, an openly gay man, wh a homophobic slur, and as they gathered unr a tent at halftime, they discsed how to team was agreement: Somethg need to be done.

"Flemmgs was later spend for six gam by the league, and he nied g an anti-gay slur toward Mart. "Beg able to have a posive msage e out of a really tough suatn was the silver lg, " he the only openly gay men's profsnal soccer player the Uned Stat -- and one of the few who have ever e out globally -- Mart has e to embrace the signifince of what he reprents, pecially for the LGBTQ+ muny.

COLL MART JT BEME THE ONLY OUT GAY MAN MAJOR LEAGUE SPORTS

Play1:48Coll Mart: Locker room support was all I needSan Diego Loyal midfielr Coll Mart says the support om his old teammat at Mnota Uned was a big help to him when he me out as gay. Around those years, havg to hi, havg to remd myself that like, 'Oh, my bt iend on the team, who jt lled another person a f----t, he isn't really homophobic, but he is jt tryg to be hurtful to that person. "Mart is not unique that he didn't have ach who were willg to step to put an end to homophobic language when was ed.

Today, there is one: Mnota Uned midfielr Coll Mart, who me out Friday morng a tweet ahead of his team’s Pri the statement posted to Twter, Mart said he is “proud to be playg for Pri, and to be playg as an out gay man. “Today, I am proud that my entire team and the management of Mnota Uned know that I am gay. ”There have been openly gay men the major leagu the recent past; 2013.

Basketball center Jason Colls ma history by beg the first active player any of the five major Amerin leagu (basketball, baseball, football, hockey, and soccer) to e out as gay.

COLL MART, MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER PLAYER, SAYS, 'I'M GAY'

”While ne former NFL football players have e out — or were outed — as gay after retirement, 2014, Michael Sam beme the first openly gay player drafted to a team. In 2015, Sam said publicly that he believed he would be signed to an NFL team if he hadn’t e out as isn’t the first MLS soccer player to play as an out gay man, eher. ”But today, Mart is the only openly gay, actively playg male athlete any of the five major leagu — which may jt be the most tightly-sealed closet left for LGBTQ+ men.

Major League Soccer midfielr Coll Mart me out Friday as a gay man, announcg his sexualy publicly for the first time, though he said had been known for years by fay, iends and, 23, ma the announcement on social media hours before his club, Mnota Uned FC, was schled to host FC Dallas for s “Pri Match” support of the LGBTQ+ muny. “Today, I’m proud that my entire team and the management of Mnota Uned know that I am gay, ” Mart wrote a msage on Twter.

”“I thk for a while I’ve been hant about postg on social media, but look around — I’m the only out gay athlete the five major [U.

COLL MART SAYS HE HAD MIXED FEELGS WHEN HIS TEAM FORFEED A GAME AFTER HE WAS LLED AN ANTI-GAY SLUR

The fact is, there aren’t enough profsnal athlet that are good role mols for kids that are growg up that are gay. June is Pri month, and I am proud to be playg for Pri, and to be playg as an out gay man. Robbie Rogers announced he was gay 2013 and retired immediately; three months later, he announced his return to the game and was acquired by the Los Angel Galaxy.

Coll Mart, a soccer player for Mnota Uned, announced on Twter Friday that he is gay, beg the only openly gay male player any of the major North Amerin sports leagu. It's an important night for me — I'll be announcg that I am an openly gay player Major League Soccer, " the player an exclive terview wh NBC News, Mart said his teammat already knew that he was gay before he me out publicly.

”In an terview wh NBC News, Hudson Taylor, the executive director of Athlete Ally, a group that aims to end the homophobia sports, said Mart jos a select group of male profsnal athlet who me out publicly. “We n still unt the number of current or former openly gay athlet on pretty much two hands, ” he said.

MNOTA UNED'S COLL MART OUT AS GAY

“Sport teach a very narrow fn of masculy and femy, " Taylor said, "and if you don’t nform to that very narrow fn, you’re gonna be met wh a culture that a lot of homophobic, sexist language, and as a rult is not perceived to be a very acceptg space. "We know there’s a dropoff on the llegiate level and the profsnal level” of gay players, he are g out at younger ag now, he said, but many current players are most likely still closeted.

When an opponent lled pro soccer player Coll Mart an anti-gay slur the middle of a match, his team walked off the field and forfeed. “Growg up as a kid, pecially high school when I thought I was potentially gog to have to hi this big fact that I was gay and still try to progrs sport, the last thg I wanted was anyone to know I was gay, and jt have my sexualy impact my abily to play.