Pandora's Closet

Gareth Thomas, Anton Hysen and Steven Davies

Anton Hysen’s recent revelation that he was gay appears to have been quite positively received. Especially when you consider that he is only the second European footballer to be so bold as to publicly ‘come out.’  

On the one hand I applaud his bravery, but on the other hand, I’m left perplexed as to why in this day and age his announcement should require bravery.

In 2005, it was estimated that six percent of the British population was gay. Imagine those figures applied to the Premier League... it would mean that there could potentially be at least one gay footballer on each Premier League team! 

There really isn’t much substance to my figures, but I would still happily wager a guess that there are at least a handful of football players who can identify with Hysen yet prefer not to rock the boat. But why?

Unfortunately that innocent question ‘why’ is the catalyst that kicks open Pandora’s Closet Door. Why should an athlete have to disclose their sexuality? Why should they keep it quiet? Why do we take so much interest in what happens behind the closed doors of these athletes? More to the point – why should any of this matter?

The only thing Hysen’s announcement has established for me is that in a day and age where women wear trousers, swearing is no longer taboo and a black man is managing the United States of America there is still a stigma attached to athletes and homosexuality. Go figure.

In order for stigmas and taboos to be broken, they have to be boldly challenged. Hysen’s done it in football, Steven Davies in cricket, Gareth Thomas in rugby – who’s next?