A big deal but one day it hopefully won’t be

‘‘Rugby’s at its best when it’s grounded in a sense of family and fellowship, when folk of all stripes feel they belong.’’ Dean Knight

sense of personal contentment – is clearly going to encourage that first gay All Black to come forward, whenever that happens.

The positive reaction to Johnstone’s coming out, and the fact he has the considerable weight of the Crusaders organisation behind him – is another factor.

No one likes being first, but it helps with the advance knowledge that support at the individual and institutional level is already in place.

So, rugby is an inclusive sport now?

Some of New Zealand’s most beloved athletes in the Blacks Ferns are part of the LGBTQI+ community, and Johnstone’s coming out will further add to the narrative that rugby is a

Visibility matters when it comes to representation of the LGBTQI+ community in sport, founder of New Zealand first gay rugby team and former chairperson of International Gay Rugby Dean Knight said.

Knight said he always knew ‘‘a day like this would come’’ and has a lot of respect for Campbell Johnstone’s strength.

‘‘It’s a very personal decision for an elite rugby player to reveal their full self, especially given the unknowns ahead of them [Johnstone] tells a familiar story of struggles and worries as a player in his prime trying to reconcile his love for rugby and his reality as a gay man.’’

Knight said having role models who have forged a path helps others, especially ‘‘young folk’’ with doubts about whether they can bring their ‘‘full self to the sportsfield’’.

‘‘Campbell spoke of the force of his idealised vision of an All Black, which then sadly didn’t square with being gay. That vision is now, rightly, being recast by him sharing his story.’’

Knight said rugby is ‘‘a different world’’ since he and few friends founded the first gay rugby team at Kelburn Park in Wellington 25 years ago. They wanted to provide opportunities for gay players to share their love of rugby and to ‘‘say it’s OK being a rugby player and gay, and that it’s OK to be gay and be a rugby player’’.

‘‘The environment then was much more hostile. But over time, the environment has changed,’’ he said.

‘‘The importance of ensuring the game is truly one for all, at both community and elite levels, is now understood. Rugby’s at its best when it’s grounded in a sense of family and fellowship, when folk of all stripes feel they belong.’’

But he said more work still needs to be done in addressing homophobia when it ‘‘pops up’’. One day he hopes being gay in sport will be normalised.

‘‘That day will come, soon I hope. No one wants these stories to be a big deal. But the reality is that we’re not there yet and these stories are important. One day we hope no one will bat an eyelid when an All Black embraces his boyfriend after a match to celebrate a hard-fought victory,’’ he said.

sport for everyone.

However, that should not be accepted with a shred of complacency.

As mentioned above, it’s the careless language – the former International Gay Rugby chairperson

Falcons Rugby Club president Brad Christensen said it was an ‘‘awesome surprise’’ to have first openly gay All Black and is impressed by the number of allies who have offered support to Johnstone.

‘‘It goes to show how NZ Rugby is behind promoting rugby as a sport for everyone. Obviously there’s been a lot of stigma particularly in rugby in New Zealand around it being overly masculine, and I think that toxic masculinity is slowly diminishing. Campbell’s story reinforces that it’s okay to be who you are,’’ Christensen said.

Andrew Rusbatch, co-chair of Christchurch Heroes Trust said Johnstone’s actions are a ‘‘historic moment’’ for sport and the gay community. He’s happy to claim Cantabrian Johnstone as ‘‘one of our own’’.

‘‘We’ve got to consider what a moment in history this is – particularly for the LGBT community – to have someone who’s visible now, and what that’s going to mean for our community in terms of visibility in sport and improving the mental health of young people. It just makes sport so much more inclusive and that to us is super exciting.’’

Rusbatch said homophobia still exists in sport and is often driven by misconceptions within both the straight and gay communities.

‘‘The first time we were invited into the clubrooms for a drink, you’ve got to understand for a gay man that feels like you’re stepping into the lion’s den because we thought they were a bunch of homophobic rugby boofheads. But they’re actually not. They’re really nice guys. But equally they thought we were a bunch of fairies and we proved we’re not!’’

throwaway line, the supposed joke – that often causes the damage.

The effort is ongoing, although people such as Johnstone accelerate it.