I couldn’t help but think that being gay could be an issue.I battled with my sexuality for many years, holding back who I really was.
It wasn’t until I was 20 that I accepted: this is me. When I came out to friends, everyone was accepting.Still, when I thought about giving wrestling a shot, I believed that a sport often associated with macho men may not accept someone like me.
And when I expressed my interest in wrestling to people, there were some mixed perceptions from ex-work colleagues, or people I socialised with. ‘Are you sure you don’t just want to admire the men in their lycra?’ friends would wink.They were just joking but I found it frustrating that I’d have to explain time and again that I liked the sport itself, not the men participating in it.
I wanted people to understand that, yes, I’m gay, but that’s just one part of my character. Wrestling could be a whole other facet.The other thought that went through my mind was that many professional sports stars come out when they retire,rather than when they’re actually practising the sport – especially in football where many stars hold their sexuality back for fear of the response they could get from fans.American football star Colton Underwood, for example, came out on national TV after he had retired from the NFL.I wanted to be open about my sexuality.