Twister Into The Water And Out Of The Closet

One of the most viewed sports’ event alongside the World Cup are the Summer Olympics, where most of the countries in the world compete against each other in every sport imaginable. For the people who couldn’t care less about sports it’s all about the athletes’ physique. I, like most of the girls out there, was mostly interested in water sports, because really, nothing beats a swimmer’s torso in all its glory, glistening in chlorine water. However, last Olympic season (2012), my attention drifted from the swimmers to the divers, particularly British diver Tom Daley.

Tom Daley, at the time just seventeen years old, not only caught my attention with his toned torso – which is kudos to the constant bending and twirling in the air before hitting the water – but also with his smile. Needless to say, he grew very popular during that time and thus started the usual series of questions involving a newbie celebutant: Who is he? How old is he? Is he single? What does he look for in a person?

As time went by, little was revealed about Tom’s personal life when it came to relationships. One can tell that he subtly stirred away from the usual ‘are you seeing anyone’ questions, talking about how busy he was with training for the next Olympics. This triggered further questions: his sexuality.

Last night, I was thrilled to find out that Tom posted a new video. The title was ‘Something I want to say…’ and, as I suspected, it really WAS something he had to say.

Honestly, I half-expected the video to be along the lines it actually was. But it didn’t bother me one bit. So what if he’s dating a guy? Does that mean he’s any different from what he used to be? In a way, it is; he is now open about both his personal life and his sexuality. And I couldn’t have been happier for him.

This video (below) can change lives, especially male athletes stuck deep in the closet. If one male athlete comes out, imagine what it can do to many others. Footballers who appear all macho and fit on TV can be screaming ‘I’m in love with a guy’ on the inside.

To the homophobes who raged over Tom Daley’s video obviously didn’t see the video, and just went all out, thinking they know it all. Tom started the announcement by saying that he had always been into girls, and he was surprised to find himself attracted to a guy. What really broke my heart was the fact that not all his family supports him in this new journey of his.

The big message in the post is to never judge a person by its exterior. You can never know what they’re screaming on the inside.