#RuleYourself

We had all thought at one time that after appearing in three Olympic Games and winning an unprecedented 22 Medals (of which 18 are Gold that swimming champion Michael Phelps would take it easy.  However he is set to join the American Olympic Team in Rio later this year to hopefully break more of his world records.

He as been very busy out of the Pool too.  He's grown a bushy beard (could he look any hottter?) and got engaged to his fiance Nicole Johnson an ex Miss California,  and they are expecting their first baby son in May.

Yesterday saw the launch of a powerful new advertisement Phelps starred in for Under Armour a sportswear company based in his hometown  of Baltimore.  The video shows Phelps putting himself through all the rigors of highly disciplined training with a very simple theme of #RuleYourself.  The message is one that we would happily share with Phelps:

It's What You Do In The Dark That Puts You In The Light

Shane Wickes : A Hero

Although he will probably want to deny it,  but Shane Wickes is a real hero. This young High School football Coach from Reno Nevada came out as gay to the world very publicly in a TED talk at the University of Nevada. His story about his own journey is powerful as he articulates about his experiences with depression and a suicide attempt, all of which led him to finally coming out for the sake of the kids who might be gay around him.

"Sharing our truth is the only way we can have the impact we want to have," Wickes said in his talk. "One day being gay in football will be normal. But in order for that to happen, those of us who are gay need to stand up and own it."

It takes balls to do what Wickes did ( and not just the kind you play soccer with).   As he added at the end of his passionate  speech “a healthy person cannot live life in the dark,”  and hopefully his bravery will inspire others struggling with their sexuality to find the light. 

Keegan Hirst Literally Bares All

Just a few days after publicly coming out as 'gay' 27-year-old British professional rugby player Keegan Hirst literally bares all for a Charity Calendar with his teammates from Batley Bulldogs. The 6'4" Captain and father-of-two's announcement on Sunday was met with universal respect and support from not just other sportsmen and celebrities but from overwhelming numbers of the general public too. This latest brave act of his will certainly increase his fan base, and make this 2016 Calendar a must-have-item.

The Calendars are on sale now from http://www.batleybulldogs.co.uk

Rugby Player Keegan Hirst : I'm Gay.'

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.