There are many and varied claims about the ratio of heterosexuals to homosexuals in the general community. It seems to be generally accepted that approximately 10% of the population is gay. Accordingly, it is unrealistic to think that just 0.1% of Olympic athletes are gay. Somewhere along the way, several hundred gay Olympians went into hiding.
Matthew Mitcham's dignified public appearances with his partner, Lachlan Fletcher, encourages us to ask where and why the others slipped back into the closet. One reason you are more likely to hear about homosexual liaisons in books published long after a sports career is over, is that sponsors and management like to keep it that way! Money talks and money seems to only talk straight. What crap! Crap or not, I will be interested in seeing whether Matthew gets the same sponsorship opportunities as Stephanie Rice.
There is continuing homophobia in sports arenas and in belief that toxic (ie. Lack of sponsorship) follows a gay athlete. The evidence is everywhere. For example, the 1998 suicide of gay UK football star Justin Fashanu and Ian's Thorpe's manager contemplating legal action when two artists portrayed him near the word "gay" in 2004, etc, etc.
Matthew Mitcham is a hero and is right to want to be known for being a great Australian athlete rather than a gay one. His ambition would be much easier to realize if sports communities did more to reflect their 10% reality.
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