British professional rugby player 27 year old Keegan Hirst made giant waves in the media when he become the first ever league player to 'come out' as gay. Hirst, a father of two, candidly recounted to 'The Sunday Mirror' that his decision to go public about his sexuality because he wanted to alleviate the guilt his wife was feeling when their marriage broke down.
The 6' 4' Captain of Batley Bulldogs (a team in West Yorkshire in the North of the UK) said 'I tick every macho box. How could I be gay? I’m from Batley for goodness sake. No one is gay in Batley.' On the video he is self assured and talks calmly about the great relief that he feels now that he has come out 'I'm now comfortable in my own skin, probably for the first time ever'. He also opens up about the difficult journey that he had to get to this point and revealed that he had even considered taking his own life. 'On the worst days I'd think, I can't do this, I'd rather be dead than for all of it to come out' he said.
His announcement has been met with an outpouring of support from not just the general public but also his fellow players with several of them hitting social media to declare their respect to Hirst. He follows in the footsteps of ex Welsh Captain Gareth Thomas who played rugby union for years and then came out as gay after he retired. Hirst is however the very first one to come out publicly whilst still actively playing. We hope that by making this brave step he will empower others to do the same.
