The NBA should be in the sports headlines this week with its intriguing conference finals match-ups and its annual NBA Draft Lottery. However, the main headline on Sunday was Phoenix Suns CEO/President Rick Welts coming out of the closet and announcing he was gay. While most people associated with the team knew of his sexual orientation, the announcement was still somewhat of a surprise. He acknowledged that it was easier to come out as a 58-year-old executive as opposed to a current player, saying "at least in male team sports," the attitude toward gays is "definitely not in step today with where society's thinking is on the whole topic. You know, it's going to take some time." The big issue I have with this is why haven’t we seen an openly gay male superstar?
Billie Jean King, Martina Navratilova, and Sheryl Swoopes are among some of the prominent female athletes who announced they were gay during their playing careers. Among the notable males who announced their homosexuality:
- Glenn Burke, marginal MLB outfielder for three years in the 1970’s. He is the only athlete among the four major sports to come out during his playing time. He believed his short sports career was caused to the prejudice against gays in professional sports. I also believe no one reading this post has ever heard of this guy (me included until I did the research).
- Billy Bean, marginal MLB outfielder for eight years. He came out of the closet four years after his retirement. Known more as the other Billy Bean, as Oakland A’s GM/creator of “Moneyball” Billy Beane is the more famous of the similar names.
- John Amechi, journeyman professional basketball for eight years. He came out two years after his retirement.
- Akil Patterson, NFL prospect was outed when NFL scouts questioned the rumors of his sexuality during the combine. Since then, he has switched to Greco-Roman wrestling and is a hopeful for the U.S. team for the 2012 Summer Olympics.
- Gareth Thomas, Welch rugby player. He came out after he retired from international play, but continues to play locally.
- Greg Louganis, famous U.S. Olympic diver. He was openly gay while competing in the 1980s.
There were a few names left off this list from the NFL and college basketball, but all of these athletes came out after their playing careers were over.
I have a few gay friends. I also feel I have even more gay friends than I know about, but they remain in the closet. I am not naïve. Despite the fact our society is more open to the gay lifestyle than in previous decades, it is still a taboo issue in some areas. I cannot say I know what it is like for these people to have to live their life in secret, but it is an absolute shame that these people believe they have to. All of the above athletes, unless noted, all mentioned they were afraid their careers would have ended prematurely if their orientation was made public. Even the athletes who were open about their lifestyle felt they had to live more privately to avoid public ridicule.
Unfortunately, it will take a current successful athlete to come out to break down this barrier. This person would need to be extremely strong emotionally as this would be a major news story. This person would receive a lot of media attention, but it would be subject to harassment from people who oppose homosexuality. And there are a lot of people out there who don’t embrace this type of open lifestyle. Some may think why a person would subject themselves to all this media scrutiny when they can continue their job while being a homosexual in private, but I do feel I will see an athlete reveal he is gay during his playing career one day. It will be a truly groundbreaking day for the sports community as hopefully it will make it acceptable for gays to play professional sports without having to keep their orientation a secret. Just like Jackie Robinson in the 1940s, there will be controversy, but it will be better for sports in the long run.
-Written by Marcus Boyd 
Is Marcus Boyd gay??
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