Tennis player gay

It was just a tiny part. “Tennis is perceived as that country club sport, a highly competitive individual sport played across every country of the world. In , American Brian Vahaly became the first ATP player to come out as gay - a decade after he ended his professional career.

The following week he won the Procopio Cup in Rio de Janeiro, earning himself a coveted spot in the qualifying draw for the city's ATP event in February. It was day after day," said Reis da Silva. Hundreds of professional tennis players will begin their campaign for Grand Slam glory at the Australian Open this weekend.

The number of his Instagram followers has climbed from 7, to over 25, Reis da Silva has felt a "different energy" - in real life and online - since the post. Unlike the women’s game, there have been few openly gay players on the ATP Tour historically. I came out before that.

With Wimbledon gearing up, it's time to remember that there are LGBTQ allies on the pro tennis tour. When Brazilian tennis player Joao Lucas Reis da Silva posted a loving birthday message to his boyfriend on Instagram, he did not think it was a big deal.

The year-old is the first active professional men's player to announce to the world he is gay. The difference on this occasion was last month's post - which had a longer shelf life than the hour stories which he previously posted - attracted more eyes. It wasn't my goal to do that, or to inspire people.

But if more men's players came out as a result, that would be great. The post Tennis stars have long been allies for gay players. There is a paradox in the tennis world surrounding sexual orientation which has continued for decades. It quickly became viral. Many female players, past and present, are openly gay.

There are a lot of reasons not to come out as a gay man,” says Brian Vahaly, the highest-ranked tennis player to ever cross that rubicon — after retirement. The U.S. Open hosted its very first Pride, and out tennis player Nick Lee was there to ask: where are the other gay men?.

The amount of attention that Reis da Silva has received, particularly from overseas, seems to have caused an element of bemusement to the player and his partner. appeared first on. Tennis has a strong history of queer champions including Martina Navratilova, Billie-Jean King and Australia’s own Samantha Stosur.

Until Reis da Silva, no active player on the men's tour has felt comfortable to do the same thing. So the post was a big thing and created a big buzz. Aside from a lack of role models, various other reasons have been put forward. What feels so natural to the couple has attracted interview requests from journalists across South America, the United States and Europe.

This is a non-diffusing subcategory of Category:Tennis players. Among the handful is former top player Brian Vahaly who came out after retiring from the sport. The positivity has been overwhelming. After all, Reis da Silva had previously uploaded personal photographs of his partner Guilherme Sampaio Ricardo on other birthdays, and also on Valentine's Day.

Their relationship was not a secret. Neither was Reis da Silva's sexuality. Among them will be a contingent of players from the LGBTQIA+ community. I loved to read that," Reis da Silva said. Travelling to countries where homosexuality is illegal and the hypermasculinity of the ATP Tour locker rooms are frequently cited.

Once the shock of the attention subsided, the vibe of positivity allowed his game to flourish. Meet 6 of them. The second Grand Slam event on the tennis calendar, the French Open, or Roland Garros, got underway in Paris on Sunday (25 May), and there are several gay tennis players offering some vital rainbow LGBTQ+ representation.

It includes Tennis players that can also be found in the parent category, or in diffusing subcategories of the parent. Because Reis da Silva had unwittingly become a trailblazer. Two of the sport's iconic stars, Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova, who between them swept the Grand Slams from the s through to the s, are proud activists who have become role models for others.