Breaking Sports Taboos Edit
Matthew Mitcham is 1st Openly Gay Aussie in Olympics

UPDATE: He has done it! Matthew Mitcham scored a Gold Olympic medal in Beijing, China. Watch an interview with him and his mother and partner in the video section.

Come Beijing Olympic 2008 Games, Matthew Mitcham will become the first openly-gay Australian to compete in the Olympic Games. He’s got a good chance of being the first gay Aussie to win a gold medal as well, as he has recently won the gold at the 2008 Diving Grand Prix in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Mitcham is the only openly gay man at the Beijing Games. There are officially 10 gay athletes participating in the 2008 Olympics, 9 of them are lesbians.

Even though sexuality is a non-issue in most walks of life these days, when it comes to the world of sports, homophobia still flourishes. That is why it is very important for successful athletes to publicly come out of the closet and set a positive example for the millions of young teens that idolize and look up to them.

The sexuality of the 20-year-old diver has recently made headline news in worldwide publications such as The Guardian, The Independent and many others after he answered a ‘loaded’ question by The Sydney Morning Herald.

“I was doing an interview with the Herald and there was a pretty innocuous question, ‘Who do I live with?’ and I just said ‘my partner Lachlan’. And the journalist was really excited – she thought it was absolutely wonderful!”

In real life, Mitcham came out to his friends and family long ago, when he was fourteen years old. However, his public coming out brings positive light to the gay community and sets him as a role model for gay teens all over the world.

“There’s not really much choice. If someone looks up to you, then you’re a role model,” says Mitcham, “And I’m happy with that. I just hope I do a good job – I’m not perfect!”

I think he would make a great role model. Hopefully, more gay athletes will take in his lead and overcome this ancient taboo.