GUS KENWORTHY
Referring to negative situations as ‘gay’, athletes taunting each other with words like faggot… this is why sport doesn’t feel like a safe space for gay people.
In 2015, world-champion freeskier Gus tweeted three little words: “I am gay.”
It changed his sport, made the 2018 Winter Olympics a ton more interesting, and made us fall in love with him!
DNA: A lot of professional athletes come out and attract no attention. Would you agree that your sex appeal has helped raise LGBT visibility in sport?
Gus Kenworthy: Firstly, I’d say that a lot of professional athletes actually don’t come out. Most of the ones that do, do it after they’re done competing. How many professional soccer teams and soccer players are there in the world? Robbie Rogers came out as the first gay man in Major League Soccer and he continued to play as the only out gay man in the league. Since retiring, he has remained the only out gay man to play in the MLS. I can assure you, it isn’t because he’s the only gay soccer player.
When I came out in 2015, I became the first openly gay action sports athlete. That category encompasses freeskiing, surfing, snowboarding, skateboarding, wakeboarding, BMX, mountain biking, etc. Since me, a pro-skater, Brian Anderson, has come out publicly and there may be a handful of others but the numbers are incredibly slim.
One of the biggest issues for LGBTIQ athletes is the huge void in terms of representation. In team sports, gay athletes are often fearful about disappointing the team by coming out, being ostracized by their teammates, ruining a team dynamic or becoming a distraction.
This is something we need to change. Athletes need to know that they’re going to be able to perform better when they’re living authentically.
One way to help the problem is that coaches need to be more mindful of the potential that queer athletes may be on their roster. When I was playing soccer and hockey in high school, the coaches would say things like, “Tomorrow’s a big game! Rest up! That doesn’t mean staying up late fucking around with your girlfriends!” Even that little sentence makes a closeted gay kid feel disconnected from their coach, their team and their sport. Had the coach just said, “girlfriend or boyfriend” it would immediately make an athlete feel safe and welcomed and set the tone for the rest of the team to fall in line.
I also think it’s the duty of coaches, trainers and athletes to stop chalking up homophobia as “locker room talk”. Referring to negative situations as “gay”, athletes taunting each other with words like faggot, and coaches calling their players pansies or fairies when the team isn’t performing well… these are the reason that sports don’t very often feel like a safe space for gay people to exist.
I’ve had so many people come up to me or write me and tell me how important it is for them to have me living and competing, out and proud, and that they too were competitive in their sport until middle school, high school, college, or even the pro- level, only to quit because they didn’t feel welcomed due to their sexuality. Being gay and being an athlete shouldn’t be mutually exclusive.
It’s important that I and other professional athletes are out because it helps change misperceptions and combats underlying homophobia. If up-and-coming gay athletes see professionals competing and living authentically it grants them permission and encourages them to do the same. We should all feel secure in being our true selves.
My coming-out story garnished a lot of positive attention and, maybe, some of it had to do with the “sex appeal” you’re referring to but, more so, I think it was the fact that I was an Olympic medallist. I was ranked #1 in the world in my sport. I had a pretty sizable social following and I came out in a hyper-masculine sport where it was “shocking” that one of the best athletes was gay.
I’ve always done my best to represent my sport and the LGBTIQ community positively. Any attention I got, in turn, helped the entire queer community in sport.
When did you first become aware of your own sex appeal?
[Laughs.] This feels like a trap! I don’t know. I guess I started to come into my own sometime around the 2014 Olympics when I was in my early twenties. I was kind of a late bloomer and struggled with self-esteem during my teenage years. I still do from time to time.
I think that all gay men struggle, to varying degrees, from the pressure to look a specific way. I certainly deal with those pressures and I often feel that being the “gay Olympian” and having been in ESPN’s Body Issue puts additional expectation on me to look a certain way. But I’m very honoured to be included in this issue and it definitely boosts the confidence!
As a kid, was there an openly gay athlete who inspired you?
There wasn’t. I just wasn’t aware of any gay athletes. And I was so deeply in the closet I didn’t even want to look into it. When I was finally starting to think about coming out and was ready I watched Tom Daley’s coming out video, Greg Louganis’ documentary, and read Robbie Rogers book.
What qualities make a man sexy?
In terms of dating, a sense of humour is paramount for me. I can think a guy is so hot but if he’s not funny (or doesn’t think I am) then it kind of kills it for me.
I like a guy who’s confident and comfortable in his skin, proud of his sexuality, generous and kind. That’s pretty much it. Physically, I’m attracted to all types of guys but dark eyes, dark hair and dark skin is definitely my type, even though that’s not my bf at all.
I usually like guys who are shorter than me or around my height. It’s rare that I’m drawn to a guy who’s way taller than me. I definitely have a thing for hairy guys and guys who take care of their bodies. That doesn’t mean they have to be crazy built or shredded, just that they are good to themselves.
Good tattoos are always sexy and a nice smile goes a long way, too. Give me an accent and it’s pretty much game over. A good pair of glasses always kill me.
Not including your current boyfriend, Matthew Wilkas or Winter Olympics buddy Adam Rippon, who would you choose as Sexiest Man Alive?
Henry Cavill.