SYDNEY: Holding professional sports games with diversity themes, such as LGBT rights, can help change the discriminatory behaviour of athletes, according to an academic study released by an Australian university on Thursday.Themed matches and rounds of matches in sports leagues around issues such as racism, sexism and homophobia have become increasingly popular in recent years, particularly in North America.The study led by Melbourne's Monash University looked at the impact of LGBT pride themed ice hockey games on athletes and found that players who took part were less likely to use homophobic slurs."Players who used homophobic slurs during a pride match said it felt like they were swearing in front of their grandmothers,” said lead author.