Eric Radford, a 2014 Olympic figure skater, has come out publicly as gay in what is often stereotyped as "the 'gayest' sport of all," according to OutSports. Yet, the outlet notes, no elite figure skater has ever come out publicly at the height of their competitive career, and Radford is not done competing. With a Silver Medal win for himself and his skating partner, Meagan Duhamel, from Sochi, the Canadian skater is hopeful for a chance to compete at the 2018 Winter Olympics in South Korea.
Radford contacted GLAAD before the Sochi Olympics about coming out, but opted to wait. He told Outsports:
"My concern was that I would be known as 'the gay athlete' if I came out at the Olympics, rather than Eric the medalling figure skater who happens to be gay. And I felt uncomfortable with that title."
He also expressed concern over the state of LGBT people in Russia, as per warnings that came from the Canadian Olympic Committee about the possibility of Russia's government looking at "a host of issues" regarding an athlete's sexual orientation. Radford and Duhamel recently won the gold at a Grand Prix event in Osaka, Japan, and are headed to the Grand Prix final in Barcelona, Spain.
Speaking about his life at home with his boyfriend of four years, Normand, and Normand's teenage daughter, Radford told OutSports:
"I'm proud of our whole situation, how we're basically a gay family. We function great, we get along so well. We have become a family. I was only 25 when I met Normand. I don't know many gay guys that age who would take on that responsibility. But I jumped right in. It's been fun and fulfilling and has broadened my perspective on so many things."
Read more at OutSports.com. To see more of GLAAD's work at the Sochi Winter Olympics and in Russia, visit www.glaad.org/russia.