A TRUE HERO
First he came out as gay, now he’s gone public on living with HIV. Wales rugby legend Gareth Thomas is …
The word hero is much overused in sport. And there is nothing particularly heroic about getting hIV — it can happen to anyone, given the right circumstances.
To talk about it, however. To go public, as a gay man and an already very public figure? That is a different matter. Gareth Thomas’ decision to break ground and admit living with hIV for a number of years is a landmark moment for men and sport.
he has spoken about ending the stigma associated with the illness. Yet what he is challenging, and not for the first time, is the many taboos that exist around male health and male sexuality.
Thomas did this initially in 2009 when he came out as gay. As a brilliant performer and captain for Wales and the British and Irish Lions, he remains the most highprofile sportsman in this country to make that statement. Until Thomas came forward, figure skater John Curry was the personification of a gay man in sport.
Thomas, a legendarily combative full back whose 100 caps for Wales stood as a record at the time, challenged preconceptions of masculinity and what a gay man could be. Now he is challenging the myths around hIV.
Thomas says he is fitter than ever, fitter even than when he played rugby.
It is an important message, as it was in 1987 when Princess Diana shook hands with an AIDS victim, without the protective barrier of gloves. There is still so much fear. even Thomas admits thinking confirmation of his illness was a death sentence. There are a lot of fictions around hIV to be confronted.
And while the support for Thomas yesterday, as he looked healthy and athletically toned taking part in an Ironman event in Tenby, Pembrokeshire, was heartening, risks of being this nakedly honest remain.
‘One of the bravest people I know,’ said former Welsh teammate Shane Williams.
Yet last November, Thomas was assaulted in Cardiff city centre, in what was judged a homophobic attack. Not everyone will be as positive as those on the sidelines yesterday. The most recent revelation about his illness came as
the result of blackmail, Thomas taking control of his destiny and his narrative, rather than being flushed out as if in shame, with a lurid headline.
The stigmas Thomas speaks of would not be present if society was as understanding of homosexuality and hIV as we might complacently believe.
Thomas is still out, on a limb. There has never been an out, gay, active male footballer in this country. There remains the fear that abuse — whether from the stands or on social media — would make life intolerable.
ReCeNTLY, Gary Lineker said he had been in touch with a gay player in the Championship, who was preparing to come out. The pair exchanged messages privately on Twitter when, at the last moment, the player said he couldn’t go through with it and deleted his account. ‘I think it was just fear of the repercussions,’ said Lineker.
Thomas’ bravery may encourage others, may make a young sportsman feel empowered, or at the very least more comfortable in his own skin and less alone.
It may change attitudes, it may in time change society.
Lineker spoke of the power and opportunity of the first gay footballer as a commercial tool. Sol Campbell reveals he once took
a meeting with Puma who were labouring under the misapprehension that he was gay. When he told them he was not, the energy seemed to go out of the conversation.
‘That’s a pity,’ said one executive. ‘We were hoping you were. We were keen to represent the first gay international footballer. We could sell many more boots — it would be a worldwide story.’
Thomas has always embraced the seriousness, the significance of what he is saying. his words are about more than just a temporary sales spike.
Yes, he has contributed to a number of television documentaries dealing with his sexuality — indeed, the revelation about his illness comes from the latest one, Gareth Thomas: HIV and
Me — and he has appeared on several reality TV shows, including Dancing On Ice.
Yet none of this has ever felt like a career move, or as if an agent was in the background pulling strings.
Throughout, the motivation has been to help, to normalise, to avoid the feelings of isolation and despair that Thomas went through before confronting the realities of his life, his health and his emotions.
It was fitting that he was powering through an Iron Man challenge yesterday. Strength and heroism comes in many forms.