Over the weekend another unlikely gay hero emerged when currently active Welsh rugby player Gareth Thomas came out of the closet. Known as one of the fiercest and toughest competitors in the sport, he publicly announced he was gay in an interview with the Daily Mail. You know what the repercussions were? NONE!  The London Times reported that the news was "regarded as a trifling"  and his teams director didn't seem to care. He's quoted as saying "I am surprised that in 2009 there are people who think this is a big deal. To us it is no deal."  Bravo to Gareth Thomas, his director, & the sport of rugby (so far) for turning this into an inspirational story that US sports would be wise to emulate.

 Of course, the road to this admission was not an easy one because Gareth Thomas said that keeping the secret was making him miserable, sometimes suicidal. He had married his high school sweetheart but when he came to terms with his homosexuality the marriage ended. Thomas is something of a sports legend having lead his team as captain to a championship in 2005 and has played in 100 championship games--more than any other player in Welsh history. As you can see the guy is built---all muscle and at 6' 3" not someone to mess with. Even outside of the game he's known as a bruiser. So when he broken down in tears finally being able to reveal his secret it was especially moving.



                       

 After splitting up with his wife Gareth Thomas tearfully confided his secret to a another coach after a game. The coach not only knew (or at least guessed the secret) and told Thomas that he needed to tell some of his fellow players--for their support--because he reckoned that the rugby player couldn't cope on his own. He told two of his teammates who basically said that they didn't even care . Their only question was why he didn't tell them earlier.

 It seems inconceivable given how much homophobia exists in US sports (and entertainment for that matter)but everyone on his team now knows and doesn't care. Gareth Thomas has gone public now by choice and he says, "I'm not going on a crusade, but I'm proud of who I am. I feel I have achieved everything I could ever possibly have hoped to achieve out of rugby, and I did it being gay. I want to send a positive message to other gay people that they can do it, too."

  We salute Gareth Thomas who has also begun working with support groups to help young people who are facing the struggle of coming to terms with their sexuality & coming out.  Naturally we admire many athletes here in the US and internationally who have also come out but Thomas is one of the few who has done so while active in his sport. We firmly believe that there are many like Gareth Thomas who are living with the secret and if they came out now they would do so much good.

 Maybe we're a little cynical but we feel like here in the US the financial bottom line trumps someone coming out. You just know that team owners, managers, & fellow players are not going to make waves if a successful player comes out...it's the syndrome of not wanting to "kill the goose that lays the golden eggs". They'll be forced to be "understanding".