by Calmin Valentino
Ozzy swimming sensation Ian Thorpe comes out.
Five time Olympic gold
medalist Ian Thorpe has recently revealed that he is gay. The Australia Olympian's statement contradicts the details in his 2012 autobiography that clearly stated his attraction
to woman.
Thorpe sat down with talk show
veteran Michael Parkinson in a "coming out" interview that was
praised by celebrities including Latin pop star and gay father of twin boys Ricky Martin, and Nets
centre Jason Collins who came out in 2013 making him the first openly gay
NBA player.
Thorpe discussed his reason
for this decision, stating that part of him did not know if Australia would
accept a gay champion.
He explains: "What
happened was, I felt that the lie had become so big that I didn't want people
to question my integrity and a little bit of ego comes into this," he
said. "I didn't want people to think that I had lied about
everything."
He hopes this new revelation will make it
easier for others to come out. The swimming star took to twitter to thank his
fans for their support. Thorpe admits
that friends and family have been very supportive and goes on to say: "I'm comfortable saying I'm a gay man and I don't want people to feel
the same way I did. You can grow up, you can be comfortable and you can be
gay."
Oscar Pistorius in the spotlight for angry fight on a night
out.
Oscar is sparking more controversy as reports surface of him fighting with a man in Sandton, South Africa.
The Olympian, who is currently
standing trail for the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp, has frequently faced rumours of his temper before the spat with another club attendee over the weekend. His representative Annalise Burgess shed some light on the situation.
"We can confirm that
Oscar was at the said venue (VIP Rooms, Sandton) accommodated by a
cousin." Annalise told NBC News. "They sat in a quiet booth in the
VIP section when they were approached by an individual who has been identified
as Jared Mortimer."
Burgess further said,
"The individual, according to my
client, started to aggressively interrogate him on matters relating to the
trial. An argument ensued during which my client asked to be left alone. Oscar
soon thereafter left the club with his cousin."
In the same breath Pistorius
broke his twitter silence while sharing numerous inspirational and religious
tweets online with one passage of a tweet reading, " The salvation of a
man is through love and in love. I understood how a man who yas nothing left in
this world still may know bliss, be it only for a brief moment, in the contemplation of his beloved. In a position of utter desolation, when man
cannot express himself in positive action, when his only achievement may consist
in enduring his sufferings in the right way - an honourable way - in such a way
man can, through loving contemplation of the image he carries of his beloved,
achieve fulfillment."
Pistorius's trial will go into final arguments on August 7.