Gay male sportsmen
27 professional athletes who identify as LGBTQ
Subscribe Newsletters
FacebookEmailXLinkedInRedditBlueskyWhatsAppCopy linkImpact Link
This story is on hand exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Turn into an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? .
- Carl Nassib made history in 2021 by becoming the first openly gay bloke to actively participate in the NFL.
- Sheryl Swoopes and Megan Rapinoe identify as lesbians.
- Caitlyn Jenner, Patricio Manuel, Fallon Fox, and Renée Richards are transgender athletes.
In 2021, Carl Nassib became the first active NFL player to come out as gay.
In June 2021, NFL defensive end Carl Nassib came out as gay in a video posted to his Instagram, adding he donated $100,000 to The Trevor Project, an corporation that focuses on suicide prevention in LGBTQ youth after he struggled with his sexuality for 15 years.
"I just want to accept a quick moment to say that I'm gay," Nassib said in the video. "I just think that voice and visibility are so important. I actually
Professional sports can be a particularly earth in which to be openly queer . A lot of homophobia remains today in many major sports, but several athletes have change into LGBT trail blazers. Gay athletes possess had successful careers in basketball, tennis, and football. and several Olympians contain also become same-sex attracted icons. This list features the greatest gay icons in sports.
Who is the most famous male lover icon in sports? David Beckham, while not gay himself, has stated that he is pleased to be a gay icon. WNBA player Sheryl Swoopes announced that she was gay in 2005 and multiple NBA stars and professional soccer players are seen as gay icons as well.
There is a growing list of Olympians who are also gay athletic icons. Olympic diver Greg Louganis, figure skater Johnny Weir, soccer player Megan Rapinoe, and German track and field star Balian Buschbaum are all openly gay.
Who do you consider are the greatest gay icons in sports? Cast your votes below.Over 1.3K Ranker voters own come together to rank this list of Greatest LGBTQ Icons in Sports
A Major US Team Sport Male Athlete Finally Comes Out Of The Closet
WASHINGTON (AP) - With the simplest of sentences, NBA veteran Jason Collins set aside years of worry and silence to become the first active player in one of four major U.S. professional sports leagues to reach out as gay.
In a first-person article posted Monday on Sports Illustrated's website, Collins begins: "I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay.''
Collins has played for six teams in 12 seasons, most recently as a reserve with the Washington Wizards after a midseason trade from the Boston Celtics. He is now a free agent and wants to keep playing in the NBA.
"I didn't position out to be the first openly gay player playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I'm happy to start the conversation. I wish I wasn't the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, `I'm different,''' Collins writes. "If I had my way, someone else would hold already done this. Nobody has, which is why I'm raising my hand.''
Saying he had "endured years of misery and gone to enormous lengths to live a
Bill Tilden, who does not obscure his homosexuality, wins the men's singles title at Wimbledon. He goes on to win two more Wimbledon titles, seven U.S. championships, and leads U.S. teams to seven Davis Cup victories. In 1950, a survey of sportswriters names Tilden the greatest tennis player of the half-century. He dies in 1953.
Tom Waddell, a 30-year-old Army physician, places sixth in the Olympic decathlon. Waddell, who is openly homosexual, becomes increasingly involved in queer politics. In 1976, Waddell and his partner Charles Deaton are the first gay men to be featured in the "Couples" section of People magazine. Five years later, Waddell forms San Francisco Arts and Athletics to plan the first "Gay Olympic Games."
David Kopay, an NFL running back who played for five teams (San Francisco, Detroit, Washington, New Orleans, Green Bay) between 1964-72, becomes the first professional team-sport athlete to come out -- doing so three years after retiring. He admits his homosexuality during an interview with the now-defunct Washington Star.
Billie Jean King is "outed" when ex-lover Marilyn Barnett sues her for "galimony" whi