Robbie Rogers comes out, then "retires" on his own terms

On his website on Friday, former USMNT forward Robbie Rogers both came out and “stepped away” from football.  The 25 year-old, scorer of the first goal in Jurgen Klinsmann’s reign as US coach, last played on New Year’s Day for English League One side Stevenage.

He was immediately greeted with a swarm of support emanating from all corners of the football world.  Former teammates, casual observers and even loudmouths in Southern France – anyone who appreciates a triad of courage, honesty and diversity – issued messages of support. 

The response has been so overwhelmingly positive from administrators, coaches and players that it can be thought of as a high-point for sport in the fight against homophobia.  During the past few years, fans have witnessed a number of athletes and executives publicly stand up to bigotry directed at them because of their sexual orientation*.

The second part of Rogers’ blog post regarded his decision to walk away from the sport to which he has devoted so much of his life.  Much conversation on the topic followed Rogers’ statement, including Clark Carlisle, the chief of England’s Professional Footballer’s Association, congratulating Rogers and hoping the player’s de facto retirement wasn’t linked to his decision to come out.

Huge admiration for @robbierogers - I hope retirement is not because of this revelation, you have our respect & support wherever you go!
— Clarke Carlisle (@clarkecarlisle5) February 15, 2013

Let’s get one thing straight: the two are inextricably linked, but perhaps not for the reasons to which one might immediately leap.  

I doubt highly Rogers has retired because he fears victimization.  From speaking with gay friends, coming out takes an awareness that you could provoke a reaction – either positive or negative – and the courage to make the choice anyway.  For a public figure, the reaction is amplified and therefore the strength of character must also be.  If it was ever in doubt at all, Friday proved that Robbie Rogers has guts. 

This suggests the (secondary) retirement decision wasn’t driven by fear at all.  He can’t not be aware of the bigotry that exists in some corners of sport and he showed he was a man strong enough to deal with those challenges.  If Robbie Rogers has the stones to come out to his “loved ones” after 25 years, then he has the stones to face the prejudiced judgment of complete strangers.

It seems more plausible that Rogers’ retirement might give him space enough to adjust to an unfamiliar new role.  Deliberate or unintentional, Robbie Rogers is now one of the most prominent “out” athletes in the United States and ultimately more newsworthy than he was a week ago.  Coming to grips with this will probably take time: it behoves fans and media outlets to allow him this basic civility.

*For a magnificent insight into a gay professional footballer’s fight, try this read on former Montreal Impact star David Testo by Leander Schaerlackens on SBNation.

Steven Davies coming out a badge of courage

Steven Davies' decision to come out of the closet in a recent interview with the English newspaper The Daily Telegraph is perhaps the most important sports story of the year so far. It may even retain that title throughout 2011. Hopefully it will help to dispel an aura of homophobia that surrounds sports like low cloud. The first openly gay international cricketer, Davies should be congratulated for his courage. Given the machismo of sport - and sadly, much of society - which looks down on homosexuality, his decision can't have been an easy one and may earn him unwarranted abuse from bigoted fans. It should also draw him plaudits for honesty and strength.

The list of openly gay professional athletes is not a long one. In Australia, the first openly gay big-name professional sportsman was Ian Roberts of South Sydney, Manly and North Queensland who revealed his sexual preference in 1995. Since then, the Australian list has been a slim one: our most visible "out" athletes now include Roberts, beach volleyballer Natalie Cook and 2008 Olympic gold medallist Matthew Mitcham, one of only eleven openly gay male athletes - of nearly eleven thousand males - at those games.

Many - most - sports have a lot to learn when it comes to dealing with bigotry. The horror stories still remain of Justin Fashanu, whose career and then life were shattered by coming out in 1990. His former manager, Brian Clough, with whom Fashanu butted heads at Nottingham Forest over football and lifestyle differences, has admitted that his treatment of football's only openly gay player was his greatest regret. Fashanu, who took his own life after a controversy in America in 1998, is remembered by The Justin Campaign (http://www.thejustincampaign.com/), formed to oppose homophobia in football and thus aiming to prevent any possible repeat occurrences. Fashanu' story probably dwells heavily and understandably in the minds of closeted homosexual footballers.

Sepp "Bellend" Blatter recently underlined the need for organisations such as The Justin Campaign and offended many with his recent suggestions that gay men "refrain" from sexual activities during the 2022 Qatar World Cup. That gaffe came from the head of one of the most powerful organisations on Earth, albeit a head with a large and misshapen mouth from repeated attempts at swallowing his own foot.

In America, the story isn't much different. Former NBA Centre John Amaechi wrote in his autobiography that his coach in Utah, Jerry Sloan, suspected his sexual preference and bullied him for it. Amaechi, like Fashanu and Davies, stands alone as the only gay player to come out from his sport's top level.

Homosexuality has been wrongly perceived, in male environments especially, as a threat or as a disease. Both perceptions are majorly flawed but the stigma attached to being gay refuses to go away. Davies' example should be lauded as another step forward, small but significant, against bigotry in sport. Like all battles, this war will be made up of one skirmish after another: for every Steve Davies there will be a Tim Hardaway. Victimisation has no place in sport or life, whether it be against race, colour, religion or sexuality. It is not only the actions of people like Davies, Amaechi & Mitcham who will change the way homosexuality is viewed, but the actions of society at large.