Indian sprinter Dutee Chand became the first sports star in the country to acknowledge being in a same-sex relationship.
Indian sprinter Dutee Chand has said that she is in a relationship with a woman she has known for a few years, becoming the first sports star in the country to acknowledge being in a same-sex relationship.
The 23-year-old athlete who was born in Chaka Gopalpur in Odisha’s Jajpur district did not identify her "soulmate" but said she is from her hometown, the Indian Express reported.
She is, however, not the first athlete to speak out about their sexuality. Sports stars like Gareth Thomas to Billie Jean King all have come out and even helped people who have problems accepting their selves as they are.
A list of athletes who came out and are proud:
1. Dutee Chand
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“I have found someone who is my soulmate. I believe everyone should have the freedom to be with whoever they decide they want to be with. I have always supported the rights of those who want to be in a same-sex relationship. It is an individual person’s choice. Currently, my focus is on the World Championships and the Olympic Games but in the future, I would like to settle down with her,” Chand told the Indian Express.
“I have always believed that everyone should have the freedom to love. There is no greater emotion than love and it should not be denied. The Supreme Court of India has also struck down the old law. I believe nobody has the right to judge me as an athlete because of my decision to be with who I want. It is a personal decision, which should be respected. I will continue to strive to win medals for India at international meets,” she said.
(Image: Reuters)
2. Gareth Thomas
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Welsh rugby star Gareth Thomas went public about his homosexuality in December 2009.
The following year he was voted the most influential gay person in the UK in the IoS Pink List and received Stonewall’s Hero of the Year award.
He told the Daily Mail, "I don't want to be known as a gay rugby player. I am a rugby player, first and foremost I am a man".[19] Thomas' public confirmation of his sexuality made him the first openly gay professional rugby union player.
In an interview with the BBC, Thomas talked about how he hoped that his coming out would mean that in the future, young gay rugby players would be able to come out and be accepted as a "talented gay rugby player".
"What I choose to do when I close the door at home has nothing to do with what I have achieved in rugby".
Since coming out, Thomas has become a vocal supporter of the British charity ChildLine, a telephone counseling service for children and young people.
In an interview, Thomas commented, "I don't know if my life is going to be easier because I'm out, but if it helps someone else, if it makes one young lad pick up the phone to ChildLine, then it will have been worth it".
(Image: Facebook)
3. Jess Jonassen and Sarah Wearn
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Jessica Jonassen is an Australian woman cricketer who is a bowling all-rounder. Jessica took to Twitter to propose her better half i.e. her lesbian partner.
She took an oath of being with her forever and ever and proposed her publicly. Here's the tweet;
Could not ask for a better person to spend the rest of my life with what a night! pic.twitter.com/kPnbo1b4iz
— Jessica Jonassen (@JJonassen21) February 28, 2018
Jessica's girlfriend Sarah Wearn does not belong to the cricket community. Jonassen proposed Wearn in February 2018 and both of them are quite active on social media.
She bowls left-arm orthodox spin and is almost a regular feature in the limited-overs sides. She has got over 130 international wickets and is a highly economical customer.
(Image: Twitter)
4. Steven Davis
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Steven Davies is the first professional cricketer to publicly out himself. He said he could no longer bear to lie about his sexuality.
Davies, who first played for England in 2009 during the Twenty20 in Trinidad, hopes the announcement will change attitudes in the sporting world, where only a handful of men are openly gay.
'This is the right time for me,' he said.
'I feel it is right to be out in the open about my sexuality. If more people do it, the more acceptable it will become. That must be a good thing.'
The 36-year-old, who is playing for the Crusaders in Europe's Super League, inspired Davies to be honest.
'Gareth Thomas's story helped me,' he said.
'It just showed me it can be done. It was a very courageous thing to do, so if I can help anyone else as he helped me, then that would be great.'
(Image: File Photo)
5. Billie Jean King
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Billie Jean King is an American former World No. 1 professional tennis player.
She was one of the first athletes to be publicly outed.
At age 29, she won the "Battle of the Sexes" tennis match against the 55-year-old Bobby Riggs.
"It was horrible," King said of the 1981 incident.
When the news broke, she said her lawyer and her press representative urged her not to admit the truth, but King refused to deny her identity as a lesbian.
“I said: ‘I’m going to do it. I don't care. This is important to me to tell the truth.’” King told NBC News. “The one thing my mother always said, ‘To thine own self be true.’”
When asked, in retrospect, if she would do anything differently, King said, "I'd come out earlier."
(Image: AFP)
6. Martina Navratilova
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Martina Navratilova is a Czechoslovak-born American former professional tennis player and coach. Tennis magazine selected her as the greatest female tennis player for the years 1975 through 2005 and she is considered one of the best female tennis players of all time.
In 1981, she came out as bisexual and revealed that she had a sexual relationship with Rita Mae Brown.
From 1984 to 1991, Navratilova had a long-term relationship with Judy Nelson, whom she met at a tournament in Fort Worth in 1982.[62] Their split in 1991 resulted in a televised palimony lawsuit which was settled out of court.[63][64]
On September 6, 2014, Navratilova proposed to her longtime girlfriend Julia Lemigova at the US Open.[65] They married in New York on December 15, 2014.
(Image: AFP)
