"Sport in Croatia Sport in Croatia has significant role in Croatian culture, and many local sports clubs as well as the Croatian national squads enjoy strong followings in the country. The most enduring sport by far in Croatia is football, and is played on amateur and professional levels amongst all age groups across the entire country. Several other major team sports are handball, basketball and water polo, with clubs in all parts of Croatia. Ice hockey is another popular team sport, namely in the Croatian interior. The most popular individual sports in Croatia are tennis, alpine skiing, and swimming, and"
"career. In 2013, basketball player Jason Collins (a member of the Washington Wizards) came out as gay, becoming the first active male professional athlete in a major North American team sport to publicly come out as gay. On August 15, 2013, WWE wrestler Darren Young came out, making him the first openly gay active professional wrestler. On February 9, 2014, former Missouri defensive lineman Michael Sam came out as gay. He was drafted by the St. Louis Rams on May 10, 2014, with the 249th overall pick in the seventh round, making him the first openly gay player to be"
"it due to their teammates’ opposition to homosexuality. Messner reiterated this opposition in his 1992 study: “The extent of homophobia in the sports world is staggering. Males (in sports) learn early that to be gay, to be suspected of being gay, or even to be unable to prove one’s heterosexual status is not acceptable."" Naturalized U.S. citizen Martina Navratilova was openly lesbian while still playing tennis, as was Billie Jean King, though previously married. A member of the United States women's national soccer team, Megan Rapinoe, came out in 2012. In 2013, soccer's Robbie Rogers and basketball's Jason Collins publicly"
"being a gay football player on April 23, 2013. In January 2014, Conner Mertens of the Division III Willamette Bearcats publicly came out as bisexual, becoming the first active college football player at any level to publicly come out. After he retired, NFL player David Kopay in 1975 was the first major professional team-sport athlete to come out. Many experts believe that the first openly gay active NFL player will not be a current athlete who comes out, but instead an already out high school or college player who ends up in the NFL. CBSSports.com reported in April 2013 that"
"He is now a stem cell researcher at UCLA. In 2013, Goldstein was inducted into the inaugural class of the National Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame. Andrew Goldstein Andrew Scott Goldstein (born March 25, 1983 in Milton, Massachusetts) is the first American male team-sport professional athlete to be openly gay during his playing career. He came out publicly in 2003 and was drafted by his hometown team, the Boston Cannons of Major League Lacrosse, in 2005. Goldstein played goaltender for the Long Island Lizards from 2005 to 2007, appearing in two games in 2006. A two-time All-American at"
"Books, which discusses his career and life as a closeted professional athlete. Amaechi is the first NBA player to speak publicly about being gay. Few male team sports members in the United States have come out as gay. Among them are former NFL players Ryan O'Callaghan, Kwame Harris, Wade Davis, Esera Tuaolo, Roy Simmons, and Dave Kopay, and former Major League Baseball players Glenn Burke and Billy Bean. Bean wrote an op-ed in support of Amaechi's decision. In 2013, Jason Collins of the NBA's Washington Wizards revealed he was gay in a ""Sports Illustrated"" article. Cyd Zeigler, the co-founder of"
"story of the May 6, 2013 issue of ""Sports Illustrated"", a first person story by Collins with journalist Franz Lidz, and posted on the magazine's website on April 29, 2013, he came out as gay, becoming the first active male athlete from one of the four major North American professional team sports to publicly do so. He wrote that he wished to maintain his privacy in regard to specific details of his personal life, and that he is not in a relationship. Collins also said a ""notorious antigay hate crime"", the murder of Matthew Shepard in 1998, led him to"
"did not play again until February 2014, when he signed with the Nets and became the first openly gay athlete to play in any of four major North American pro sports leagues. In April 2014, Collins was featured on the cover of ""Time Magazine's"" ""100 Most Influential People in the World"". Collins was born in Northridge, California. He was born eight minutes ahead of his twin brother Jarron, who also became an NBA player. They graduated from Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles. He and Jarron won two California Interscholastic Federation state titles during their four-year careers with a combined record"
"he was still an active player, Bean revealed himself four years after his retirement in 1995, the year Burke died. On August 2, 2013, Burke was among the first class of inductees into the National Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame. In July 2014, Major League Baseball announced plans to honor Burke at the 2014 All-Star Game, doing so as part of a pregame press conference on July 15, 2014. The Fox broadcast in the United States did not mention Burke. On June 17, 2015, the Oakland Athletics honored Burke as part of Athletics Pride Night. Burke's brother, Sydney,"
"have documented an increasing trend toward openly gay athletes in high school and collegiate level sports. This trend, however, has not been seen in professional sports, where homosexuality still remains largely stigmatized in the four major North American professional sports leagues. Only Jason Collins of the NBA has come out while active, and only nine players have come out after their careers were over: Wade Davis, Kwame Harris, Dave Kopay, Ryan O'Callaghan, Roy Simmons, and Esera Tuaolo (NFL); Billy Bean and Glenn Burke (MLB); and John Amaechi (NBA). This same trend can also be found in England's Professional Footballers' Association"
"in my life"", and added, ""I'm going to do whatever I can to correct it. That's all I can do."" In an interview on February 11, 2010, on Hardcore Sports Radio on Sirius, Hardaway spoke about his recent work with The Trevor Project and The YES Institute, which he has done to educate himself on LGBT issues. In April 2013, when Jason Collins came out as the first active openly gay male player in a major American professional team sport, Collins claimed that Hardaway called him in support of his homosexuality. In July 2013, Hardaway was the symbolic first signer"
"Andrew Goldstein Andrew Scott Goldstein (born March 25, 1983 in Milton, Massachusetts) is the first American male team-sport professional athlete to be openly gay during his playing career. He came out publicly in 2003 and was drafted by his hometown team, the Boston Cannons of Major League Lacrosse, in 2005. Goldstein played goaltender for the Long Island Lizards from 2005 to 2007, appearing in two games in 2006. A two-time All-American at Dartmouth College, in 2003 Goldstein led the Big Green to the Ivy League title, earning a spot in the Division I tournament, the only in the school's history."
"out was former NFL running back David Kopay, who played for five teams (San Francisco, Detroit, Washington, New Orleans and Green Bay) between 1964 and 1972. He came out in 1975 in an interview in the ""Washington Star"". The first professional athlete to come out while still playing was Czech-American professional tennis player Martina Navratilova, who came out as a lesbian during an interview with ""The New York Times"" in 1981. English footballer Justin Fashanu came out in 1990 and was subject to homophobic taunts from spectators, opponents and teammates for the rest of his career. In 1995 while at"
"DC Gay Flag Football League founded in 2010. In 2013, soccer's Robbie Rogers and basketball’s Jason Collins each publicly announced their homosexuality. In 2014, football's Michael Sam publicly announced his homosexuality at the NFL draft. In 2015, starting in 2014 the Detroit Regional LGBT Chamber of Commerce completed the fourth ""Pride Night"" games promoting LGBT Pride in all major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. The CEO James Felton Keith stated ""these sports franchises are some of the largest corporations in the area and they affect the overall social sentiment"". Homosexuality in modern sports Lesbian, gay, bisexual,"
"engaged. They were married on December 2, 2017, in Malibu, California. Robbie Rogers Robert Hampton Rogers III (born May 12, 1987) is a television producer and former American professional soccer player. He played as a winger and as a left back. Rogers has also represented the United States men's national soccer team. In February 2013, Rogers came out as gay, becoming the second male soccer player in Britain to do so after Justin Fashanu in 1990. On May 26, 2013, he became the first openly gay man to compete in a top North American professional sports league when he played"
"Homosexuality in modern sports Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and other non-heterosexual or non-cisgender (LGBTQ+) athletes have faced intolerance due to heteronormativity within sports culture. There have been several notable outspoken homosexual athletes, including Sheryl Swoopes, Billie Jean King, and Billy Bean. In the 1980s Tom Waddell, an Olympic decathlete, hosted the first Gay Games in San Francisco. Since then many homosexual sporting organizations have been founded along with sporting events that feature homosexual athletes. While, overall the trend is towards open acceptance, different sports vary in acceptance widely and homosexual athletes still face many challenges. International sports organizations have"
"likely abandoned the more macho sports in favor of sports that were more accepting of homosexuality. In 2006, a ""Sports Illustrated"" poll of roughly 1,400 professional athletes found that a majority would be willing to accept a gay teammate. Although an aggressive and often violent sport, professional hockey (NHL) athletes seemed to be the most accepting of such teammates as 80% of its players approved of having a gay teammate. Nearly a quarter of those in the U.S. polled believe that openly gay athletes hurt sports in general, while over half think being openly gay hurts the athlete's career. In"
"Griner came out in 2013, and Elena Delle Donne came out in 2016. In 2014, Michael Sam, an openly gay college football player, was drafted by the St. Louis Rams in the 2014 NFL Draft, becoming both the first openly gay National Football League athlete and the first athlete in any sport to be drafted into a major league while already openly gay (rather than coming out after they were already playing in the league). During his research, Anderson found ""more openly gay runners and swimmers than football and baseball players."" He then hypothesized that this occurred because gay men"
"nation's first openly gay, actively playing, professional team sport athlete, Robbie Rogers who currently plays for LA Galaxy. Eric Anderson earned a B.A. from California State University Long Beach in 1990; a California State Teaching Credential in 1991; and an M.A. in Sport Psychology in 1993. From the University of California Irvine, Anderson earned an M.A in Sociology in 2002 and a Ph.D. in 2004 with a dissertation that became his book """", which the American Library Association recognized as Outstanding Academic Title for that year (2005). Before joining the University of Winchester in 2011, Anderson completed post-doctoral work with"
"Slam. He became the 19th individual player and, with Bob Bryan, the seventh doubles pair to achieve this. In 2012, by winning the Olympic gold medal, along with his brother, Mike completed the career ""Golden Slam"", as did Bob. They are the only team that has ever accomplished this. ""Current through the 2018 ATP World Tour."" Mike Bryan Michael Carl Bryan (born April 29, 1978) is an American professional tennis player. The right-hander turned pro in 1998. With his twin brother Bob, he has been world No. 1 doubles player for more than eight years, first achieving the top ranking"
"a Major League Baseball organization to do so. He was also the second active pro baseball player to have come out. David Denson David Lamont Denson (born January 17, 1995) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and outfielder. He played in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers organization. In 2015, Denson became the first active player affiliated with a Major League Baseball organization to publicly come out as gay. Denson attended Bishop Amat High School in La Puente, California, for his freshman year, and then transferred as sophomore to South Hills High School in West Covina,"
"five additional former NFL Players have come out as gay, Roy Simmons in 1992, Esera Tuaolo in 2002, Wade Davis in 2012, Kwame Harris in 2013 and Ryan O'Callaghan in 2017. Kopay has been credited with inspiring these athletes to be more open about their sexual orientation. In May 1977, Kopay was on the cover of GPU News (Gay People’s Union, Milwaukee). Kopay appears as himself in a small but pivotal role in the film ""Tru Loved"" (2008). His scene features young actor Matthew Thompson and Alexandra Paul. Kopay became a Gay Games Ambassador for the Federation of Gay Games."
"Homosexuality in American football Few American football players have come out as gay. Six former National Football League (NFL) players have come out publicly after they retired. There has never been anyone who has been publicly out while playing in the NFL. Michael Sam was selected by the St. Louis Rams in 2014 NFL Draft, and became the first publicly gay player drafted in the league, but was released before the start of the regular season. He became the first publicly gay player to play in the Canadian Football League in August 2015. In college football, Division III player Conner"
"player to come out as gay. Testo is a member of the Advisory Board for You Can Play, a campaign dedicated to fighting homophobia in sports. David Testo David Testo (born August 7, 1981, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina) is an American retired soccer player who, after his playing career ended in 2011, became the first male American professional player of that sport to come out as gay. Testo played professionally from 2003 to 2011, including two years in Major League Soccer with the Columbus Crew from 2004 to 2005. He began his career with the second division side Richmond Kickers,"
"2012. <nowiki>*</nowiki> Posthumously outed Homosexuality in American football Few American football players have come out as gay. Six former National Football League (NFL) players have come out publicly after they retired. There has never been anyone who has been publicly out while playing in the NFL. Michael Sam was selected by the St. Louis Rams in 2014 NFL Draft, and became the first publicly gay player drafted in the league, but was released before the start of the regular season. He became the first publicly gay player to play in the Canadian Football League in August 2015. In college football,"
"Mertens came out as bisexual in January 2014, becoming the first active college football player at any level to publicly come out. In August 2014, Arizona State player Chip Sarafin became the first publicly out active Division I player. In 2017, Scott Frantz publicly came out as gay, joining My-King Johnson as two of the first openly gay players in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision. Later that same year, Frantz became the first openly gay college football player to play in a game for a NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision school. In 2018, Bradley Kim of the"
"became the first known current or former NFL player to be in a same-sex marriage. In February 2014, Sam publicly came out after his college career had ended, and became the first publicly gay player drafted in the NFL when he was selected in the seventh round of the 2014 draft. Six months later, Chip Sarafin came out, becoming the first active Division I player to come out. The following season another Division I offensive lineman, Mason Darrow of Princeton, also came out publicly. In August 2015, Sam became the first publicly gay player to play in a Canadian Football"
"Robbie Rogers Robert Hampton Rogers III (born May 12, 1987) is a television producer and former American professional soccer player. He played as a winger and as a left back. Rogers has also represented the United States men's national soccer team. In February 2013, Rogers came out as gay, becoming the second male soccer player in Britain to do so after Justin Fashanu in 1990. On May 26, 2013, he became the first openly gay man to compete in a top North American professional sports league when he played his first match for the LA Galaxy. After one season playing"
"Pierre LeBrun, and Bob McKenzie promised to cover LGBT athletes without sensationalizing their sexual orientations. Akil Patterson, a former University of Maryland athlete and aspiring Olympian in Greco-Roman Wrestling, contributed a video to the project, talking in detail about his struggles with addiction and his own sexuality. Jon Cornish of the Calgary Stampeders received a lot of media attention in 2012 when, after a practice during Grey Cup week, he revealed to reporters that his mother was a lesbian. His open admission of his mother's sexual orientation was part of a growing trend of acceptance of homosexuality and gave him"
"through the current season for the Kansas City Explorers. With his twin brother Mike (who is the older by two minutes), Bob has won 116 doubles titles, including sixteen Grand Slam titles. In 2005, the Bryan brothers made it to the finals of all four Grand Slam tournaments, only the second time a men's doubles team has done this during the open era. In 2006, the Bryan brothers won Wimbledon and the Australian Open and completed a Career Grand Slam. Having won the 2012 US Open, they followed up by winning the first three majors of 2013, and thus held"
"National Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame The National Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame is a hall of fame established in 2013 to honor LGBT and allied personalities and organizations ""whose achievements and efforts have enhanced sports and athletics for the gay and lesbian community"". It was established shortly after Jason Collins became the first openly gay NBA player. It is located on the grounds of Center on Halsted in Chicago, Illinois. The 2013 induction class was announced on June 18, 2013, with a formal induction ceremony scheduled for August 2. Those inducted were: The 2014 inductees"
"David Denson David Lamont Denson (born January 17, 1995) is an American former professional baseball first baseman and outfielder. He played in Minor League Baseball (MiLB) for the Milwaukee Brewers organization. In 2015, Denson became the first active player affiliated with a Major League Baseball organization to publicly come out as gay. Denson attended Bishop Amat High School in La Puente, California, for his freshman year, and then transferred as sophomore to South Hills High School in West Covina, California. He committed to play college baseball for the Hawaii Rainbow Warriors. As a high school senior in December 2012, Denson"
"Homosexuality in sports in the United States Historically the United States has not embraced openly lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) athletes. The study of the relationship between sports and homosexuality did not emerge until around the 1990s, when Brian Pronger and Michael Messner began interviewing athletes about their views on homosexuality. Neither researcher was able to find a male athlete who was openly gay and active competitors in both individual and team sports. They suggested that it was not that there were no such athletes during this period in time, but they were just too afraid to admit to"