List of LGBT Summer Olympians (1900–2000)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

There have been 134[a] modern Summer Olympic athletes, who made their Olympic debut up to and including 2000, who have identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, pansexual, non-binary, queer, or who have openly been in a same-sex relationship, including one who has also competed at the Winter Olympic Games. The first Olympic Games in which an athlete now known to be LGBT+ competed was the 1900 Summer Olympics, also the first LGBT+ Olympic medalist and first contemporaneously out Olympian.[a]

The most decorated able-bodied LGBT+ Summer Olympian is Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe, with 9 medals including 5 golds.[a] At least 76 LGBT+ Summer Olympians to 2000 are medalists (56.72%), of which 37 have at least one gold medal (27.61%).[a][b]

Overview[edit]

All based on the List of LGBT Summer Olympians (1900–2000)

By sport
Sport Number of Olympians by gender[N 5]
Female Male Total
Cisgender Transgender Cisgender Transgender
Athletics 9 1[N 6] 7 1[N 7] 18
Basketball 6 6
Beach volleyball 2 2
Boxing 2 2
Cycling 5 1 6
Diving 7 7
Equestrian 11 11
Fencing 1 1 2
Football 24 2 26
Gymnastics 1 4 5
Handball 4 4
Hockey 7 7
Judo 4 4
Rowing 6 1 7
Swimming 5 11 16
Tennis 7 1 8
Triathlon 1 1
Volleyball 3 3
Notes
  1. ^ Including Czechoslovakia
  2. ^ Including Weimar Republic, West Germany and East Germany
  3. ^ Hege Riise represented Norway up to 2000, and Great Britain in 2020. She is only counted for Norway in this table.
  4. ^ Including multi-year appearances of the same Olympian.
  5. ^ Including multi-disciplinary Olympians
  6. ^ Competed in a men's category
  7. ^ Competed in a women's category


Key[edit]

Δ Was known to be widely out prior to their most recent Olympic competition; contemporaneously out while competing

 Came out after competing

 Posthumously identified as LGBT+

  • Tables are default sorted by first Games appearance chronologically, then current surname or common nickname alphabetically, then first name alphabetically. They can be sorted by current surname (where used) or common nickname alphabetically; by country and sport alphabetically; by Games chronologically;[c] and by medals as organised in Olympics medals tables.[d]

Summer Olympic athletes and coaches (1900–2000)[edit]

Athlete Country Sport Games Medal(s) Notes
Robert de Montesquiou Δ  France Equestrian 1900 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Montesquiou was a "notorious homosexual",[1] with this influence discussed, though he may have lived a chaste life.[2] He won a bronze medal in the Hacks and hunter combined equestrian event in 1900;[3] prior to 1996, the event was not consistently considered to have been truly Olympic, but is since included.[4][5] Around the time of his Games appearance in 1900, Montesquiou was noted to feel stifled by the aristocracy he had been born into, which was "fundamentally conservative".[6]
George Poage  United States Athletics 1904 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) The first African-American Olympic medalist, Poage was also gay. Black activists wanted a boycott of the 1904 Games in which Poage competed, as crowds would be segregated in St. Louis, but Poage felt it important that he compete. After his success, he moved to the city to teach; though rumors of him being gay were prevalent, and may be the reason he was fired from his teaching job, it was only confirmed by family after his death.[7][8][9]
Niels Bukh  Denmark Gymnastics 1908, 1912 Bukh was selected to the 1908 Olympic team, but did not compete, and then was coach of the gold-medal winning 1912 gymnastics team. He was out, though not widely; he was outed internationally by a former partner after expressing support for the Nazis. In part, his support came from Adolf Hitler being a personal fan and inviting Bukh to be part of his propaganda (displaying the ideal male aesthetic) for the 1936 Games in Berlin. His biographers suggest that, despite his support for the party; the German occupation of Denmark; and the outing, Bukh never knew of the Nazi stance on homosexuality.[10][11][12][13][14][15]
Leif Rovsing  Denmark Tennis 1912 Rovsing was openly gay within his sport and this was accepted; the Danish Football Association, which administed tennis at the time, however, felt his sexuality was at conflict with the working-class ideals of their sport, and in 1917 used evidence of other men visiting Rovsing's home to ban him from competing. The ban was rescinded but reinstated in the 1920s, saying that his "opinions and conduct" were the reason for the ban, which then extended to being excluded from some locker and shower rooms.[16][17]
Fritzi Löwy  Austria Swimming 1928 Described as "reportedly bisexual" during her career, Löwy remained unmarried.[18]
Otto Peltzer Weimar Republic Germany (Weimar Republic) Athletics 1928, 1932 Peltzer was openly gay,[19] though this was not widely known.[10] In the 1930s, he was arrested by the Nazis for his homosexuality. Sentenced to 18 months in prison, he was released early on the condition that he renounce his involvement in sports. He did but, ultimately, was imprisoned in Mauthausen concentration camp until its liberation in 1945.[20][21][22][23]
Babe Didrikson Zaharias United States United States Athletics 1932 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s) Won two gold medals and one silver medal in one Olympic Games.[24][25] Though she did not identify her sexuality, Didrikson Zaharias was described as a lesbian. As her marriage deteriorated in the 1950s, she became intimate with Betty Dodd, who moved into Didrikson's home towards the end of her life.[26][27][28][29]
Helen Stephens United States United States Athletics 1936 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s) Stephens had a long-time female partner.[17][30][31] At the 1936 Games, she and rival Stella Walsh were accused of being men. Rudimentary sex verification checks were carried out; Stephens reported that Hitler himself "[took] hold of [her] fanny" to affirm she was a woman,[32][33] which she was (an autopsy would show that Walsh was intersex).[34]
Marjorie Larney United States United States Athletics 1952, 1956 [17]
Susan McGreivy United States United States Swimming 1956 Following her Olympics competition, McGreivy became a lesbian activist. She also helped to defend the Gay Games in front of the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee.[35][36]
Norman Elder Canada  Canada Equestrian 1960, 1968 Elder was known to be gay within his community for many years but was widely outed in the 1990s after being charged with indecent assault allegations relating to instances of gay sex in the 1970s. After serving a prison sentence, he fell into poverty and subsequently killed himself in 2003.[37]
Marion Lay Canada  Canada Swimming 1964, 1968 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Lay competed in two Olympic Games, winning a bronze medal in 1968.[38] After competing, Lay came out as a lesbian, and has contributed to supporting LGBT issues in sport, including organizing Pride Houses.[39]
Karin Büttner-Janz  East Germany Gymnastics 1968, 1972 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [29]
Mason Phelps Jr.  United States Equestrian 1968 Selected as an alternate.[40][41]
Tom Waddell  United States Athletics 1968 Several years after competing at the Olympic Games, Waddell founded the "Gay Olympics", renamed the Gay Games. He died of AIDS shortly after this.[42]
Mark Chatfield  United States Swimming 1972 Chatfield came out after retiring from sport, saying he remained closeted for fear of being removed from the team, and then unretired to compete in the Gay Games in 1994.[43]
Peter Prijdekker  Netherlands Swimming 1972 As well as the Olympics, Prijdekker competed at the Gay Games for Great Britain,[44] having previously been banned from his swim team after his partner died of AIDS.[45]
Betty Baxter  Canada Volleyball 1976 After competing, Baxter became a volleyball coach, but was fired when newspapers outed her as a lesbian. She then helped to organize the Gay Games.[46][47]
Scott Cranham  Canada Diving 1976 Cranham came out after his Olympic career, and went on to compete at Gay Games.[48]
Caitlyn Jenner  United States Athletics 1976 1st place, gold medalist(s) Jenner won the men's decathlon in 1976[49] before becoming a reality star; when she came out in 2015, she became one of the highest profile transgender individuals.[50] She advocates to prevent trans women from taking part in sports at all levels.[51]
Sandra Kirby  Canada Rowing 1976 After competing at the Olympics, Kirby started campaigning against female athletes all having to have chromosomal testing in order to compete.[52] She then became a researcher of gender and homophobia in sports, and came out after becoming a professor.[53]
Nancy Lieberman  United States Basketball 1976 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Previously dated Martina Navratilova, but stayed closeted even as Navratilova came out.[54]
Greg Louganis  United States Diving 1976, 1984, 1988 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s) Though he had been living a fairly openly gay life, Louganis publicly came out with a pre-taped video shown at the 1994 Gay Games.[55][56] A year later, he announced he was HIV-positive in his memoir, Breaking the Surface.[57] In 1984 and 1988, Louganis won gold medals in both diving events, having won platform silver in 1976;[58][59] he famously hit his head on the diving board in 1988, bleeding, shortly after being diagnosed as HIV-positive, a scenario he said left him "paralyzed with fear".[55]
Gail Marquis  United States Basketball 1976 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Married a woman in 2011.[60]
Olivier Rouyer  France Football 1976 A member of the French football squad, Rouyer came out as gay after retiring from both playing and coaching.[61][62][63]
Terence Etherton  Great Britain Fencing 1980 Etherton was named to the team in 1980 but chose to boycott.[64][65]
Rafael Polinario  Cuba Swimming 1980 After competing, Polinario sought asylum in Canada and became a coach for their Paralympic swimming team, particularly his daughter, Anne Polinario.[66][67]
Jackie Silva  Brazil Volleyball, Beach volleyball 1980, 1984, 1996 1st place, gold medalist(s) Competed in volleyball in 1980 and 1984, and won gold in the inaugural beach volleyball competition in 1996.[68][69]
Sabine Braun  West Germany /  Germany Athletics 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Braun is openly lesbian and lives with Beate Peters.[67][70]
Sherry Cassuto  United States Rowing 1984, 1988 An alternate in the 1984 Olympics, Cassuto competed in 1988.[71][72]
Robert Dover Δ  United States Equestrian 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Known as the first widely out Summer Olympian, Dover came out before competing in his second Games in 1988.[73][10] In 2004, he told reporters that there were many more gay athletes than were out at the Games, suggesting they were closeted just because they were more focused on sport.[74]
Greg Duhaime Δ  Canada Athletics 1984 Duhaime was openly gay.[75]
Gigi Fernández Δ  United States Tennis 1984, 1992, 1996 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s) Though Puerto Rican, Fernández competed for the United States at the Olympics.[67][76] She came out in 1993[77] and has been with partner Jane Geddes since the 1990s.[78]
Ginny Gilder  United States Rowing 1984 2nd place, silver medalist(s) [79]
Bruce Hayes  United States Swimming 1984 1st place, gold medalist(s) Hayes became the first Olympic gold medalist to compete at the Gay Games, which he did in 1990.[67][76][80]
Zoe MacKinnon  Canada Hockey 1984 [81]
Holly Metcalf  United States Rowing 1984 1st place, gold medalist(s) [67][82]
Beate Peters  West Germany Athletics 1984, 1988 Peters is openly lesbian and lives with Sabine Braun.[67][70]
Helena Åberg Δ  Sweden Swimming 1988 Åberg's coach was unhappy when she publicly came out in the 1980s, but they reconciled and went on to work together in training for the Olympics.[83]
Mark Foster  Great Britain Swimming 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2008 Came out widely in 2017.[84]
Colin Jackson  Great Britain Athletics 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Jackson denied he was gay in a 2004 autobiography, and again in 2008, before coming out in 2017.[85]
Patrick Jeffrey Δ  United States Diving 1988, 1996 Jeffrey came out between his Olympic appearances, competing openly in 1996.[86]
Brian Marshall  Canada Athletics 1988 Came out in 1994.[87]
Jana Novotná  Czechoslovakia /  Czech Republic Tennis 1988, 1992, 1996 2nd place, silver medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Lived with partner Iwona Kuczyńska from 2010 until Novotná's death in 2017.[88]
Inger Pors Olsen  Denmark Rowing 1988, 1996 [67]
Craig Rogerson Δ  Australia Diving 1988, 1992, 1996 Rogerson was out when he first competed in 1988.[89]
Petra Rossner Δ  East Germany /  Germany Cycling 1988, 1992, 2000 1st place, gold medalist(s) She began living with then-partner Judith Arndt in 1996.[90]
Mark Tewksbury  Canada Swimming 1988, 1992 1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) A year after his last Olympics, in 1993, Tewksbury anonymously came out on a Canadian radio show discussing homophobia in sport.[91] He publicly came out in 1998.[92]
Dan Veatch  United States Swimming 1988 Veatch said that, when he went to the Olympics in 1988, he both had not personally dealt with his sexuality, and felt there would have been a lot of pressure to come out as gay as a top-level athlete. He went on to compete at the 1998 Gay Games.[93]
Alyson Annan Δ  Australia /  Netherlands Hockey 1992, 1996, 2000, 2012, 2016, 2020 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s) Competed as a player for Australia from 1992 to 2000, winning two golds, and as coach for the Netherlands from 2012 to 2020, winning two golds and a silver. She was also the team manager of the Netherlands squad in 2004, when they won a silver medal.[94] At the 2000 Olympics she met her future wife, Dutch player Carole Thate.[95]
Miriam Blasco  Spain Judo 1992 1st place, gold medalist(s) Married Nicola Fairbrother, her opponent in her Olympic gold medal match, in 2016.[96]
Irene de Kok  Netherlands Judo 1992 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [67][97]
Lin Dunn  United States Basketball 1992 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) As coach.[98]
Nicola Fairbrother  Great Britain Judo 1992, 1996 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Married Miriam Blasco, her opponent in her Olympic gold medal match, in 2016.[96]
Lawrence Keith Frostad  United States Swimming 1992 Came out in 2022, saying he had experienced homophobia as part of the national team.[99]
Carl Hester Δ  Great Britain Equestrian 1992, 2000, 2004, 2012, 2016, 2020 1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Hester has competed at six Summer Olympics,[100] and has been publicly out as gay since before his fourth Olympics, at home in the UK.[67][101]
Mark Leduc  Canada Boxing 1992 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Leduc spoke anonymously about being gay and an Olympian on a Canadian radio show in 1993, before coming out publicly in 1994.[91]
Conchita Martínez Δ  Spain Tennis 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004 2nd place, silver medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Was in a relationship with Gigi Fernández in the 1990s.[77][67]
Marnie McBean  Canada Rowing 1992, 1996 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) McBean began coming out within her personal life after competing.[102]
Enrique Sarasola Jr.  Spain Equestrian 1992, 1996, 2000 [103]
Blyth Tait Δ  New Zealand Equestrian 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008 1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Competed at four Summer Olympics as an athlete, and as eventing manager in 2008; he was publicly out before the 2004 Games.[104][74]
Carole Thate Δ  Netherlands Hockey 1992, 1996, 2000 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Out by the 2000 Olympics, where she met her future wife, Australian opponent Alyson Annan.[95][105]
Anja Andersen Δ  Denmark Handball 1996 1st place, gold medalist(s) Had a relationship with teammate Camilla Andersen at the time of the 1996 Games.[106]
Camilla Andersen Δ  Denmark Handball 1996, 2000 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s) Entered a civil partnership with Norwegian opponent Mia Hundvin shortly before the 2000 Games; they were the first spouses to directly compete against each other at the Olympics.[106]
Judith Arndt Δ  Germany Cycling 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012 2nd place, silver medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) She began living with then-partner Petra Rossner in 1996.[90]
Jennifer Azzi  United States Basketball 1996 1st place, gold medalist(s) Came out widely in 2016 when introducing fellow gay basketball executive Rick Welts at an event.[107]
Kajsa Bergqvist  Sweden Athletics 1996, 2000 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Came out as bisexual in 2011.[108]
Kris Burley  Canada Gymnastics 1996 Burley is a spokesman for the Canadian Olympic Committee's program to combat homophobia in sport.[109]
Agnete Carlsen  Norway Football 1996 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Entered a registered partnership with teammate Heidi Støre in 1999.[110]
Natalie Cook Δ  Australia Beach volleyball 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012 1st place, gold medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Married a woman in 2008.[111]
Amanda Cromwell  United States Football 1996 1st place, gold medalist(s) Married a woman in 2022.[112] Won the event as part of the team, but did not play.[113]
Michelle Ferris  Australia Cycling 1996, 2000 2nd place, silver medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s) Was widely out before 2011, when The Age wrote that she had been the first out Australian elite sportswoman; at the time, she explained that if she had ever been asked about her sexuality when competing she would have been out, and did not bring it up herself as she felt it was unrelated to her sport. She also said that her sexuality was known at the time she was competing, she just did not talk about it publicly.[114]
Formiga Δ  Brazil Football 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020 2nd place, silver medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s) Widely out by the 2020 Games.[115]
Louise Hansen  Denmark Football 1996 Widely out by 2008, when she was in a relationship with Renate Lingor.[116] Was part of the squad but did not play.[117]
Tone Haugen  Norway Football 1996 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Also competed in the 2002 Gay Games.[118]
Tiia Hautala  Finland Athletics 1996, 2000, 2004 Came out in 2013.[119]
Billie Jean King Δ  United States Tennis 1996, 2000 King was outed by an ex-partner in a lawsuit in 1981, ultimately forcing her retirement in 1983;[120] she did not get a chance to play at the Olympics but did coach the United States women's tennis team to two gold medals, and in 2003 was awarded the International Olympic Committee Women and Sport World Trophy.[121] In 2013, Barack Obama named her to the US delegation for the 2014 Winter Olympics, held in Sochi, as a statement against Russia's homophobic laws.[122]
Daniel Kowalski  Australia Swimming 1996, 2000 1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Came out in 2010.[123]
Katja Kraus  Germany Football 1996 Unusued substitute. Married to politician Katrin Suder.[124]
Renate Lingor Δ  Germany Football 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Widely out by 2008, when she was in a relationship with Louise Hansen.[116]
Linda Medalen  Norway Football 1996 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Came out in 1999.[125]
Ioannis Melissanidis Δ  Greece Gymnastics 1996, 2000 1st place, gold medalist(s) Came out in 1996.[126] Reportedly the first openly gay Greek modern Olympian to win a gold medal.[127]
Sandra Minnert  Germany Football 1996, 2000, 2004 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [128]
Bente Nordby  Norway Football 1996, 2000 1st place, gold medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Came out in 2005.[129]
Graeme Obree  Great Britain Cycling 1996 [130]
David Pichler Δ  United States Diving 1996, 2000 Came out publicly shortly before his Olympic debut in 1996, in an interview at the US trials, when he accused the national coach of being out to get him and his boyfriend.[86]
Hege Riise Δ  Norway /  Great Britain Football 1996, 2000, 2020 1st place, gold medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) [131]
Danni Roche  Australia Hockey 1996 1st place, gold medalist(s) [132]
Briana Scurry Δ  United States Football 1996, 2000, 2004 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s) Widely out by 1999.[133]
Guenter Seidel Δ  Germany Equestrian 1996, 2000, 2004 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Was widely out before 2004.[41]
Reidun Seth  Norway Football 1996 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Also competed in the 2002 Gay Games.[118]
Jimmy Sjödin  Sweden Diving 1996 [67][134]
Heidi Støre  Norway Football 1996 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Entered a registered partnership with teammate Agnete Carlsen in 1999.[110]
Rennae Stubbs Δ  Australia Tennis 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008 Came out publicly in 2006.[135]
Pia Sundhage Δ  Sweden /  United States /  Brazil Football 1996, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s) Competed as a player for Sweden in 1996, the coach of the Sweden women's team in 2016, the coach of the United States women's team in 2008 and 2012, and the coach of the Brazil women's team in 2020.[136] She came out in 2010, saying that she experienced no homophobia in the United States.[137]
Sheryl Swoopes  United States Basketball 1996, 2000, 2004 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s) Swoopes came out as gay in 2005, and lived with a female partner for six years. She has twice married men.[138][139][140]
Lena Videkull  Sweden Football 1996 [141]
Lisa-Marie Vizaniari Δ  Australia Athletics 1996, 2000 Vizaniari was widely out prior to the 2000 Olympics.[142]
Martina Voss-Tecklenburg  Germany Football 1996 Had a relationship with Inka Grings that ended in 2000.[143][144]
Saskia Webber  United States Football 1996 1st place, gold medalist(s) Webber was an alternate goalkeeper for the team.[145] She has also played at the Gay Games.[146]
Francilla Agar Δ  Dominica Swimming 2000 Agar is openly lesbian and resides in Canada, saying at the time of her Games that she sometimes avoided going back to Dominica due to the attitude of the wider community.[147]
Marilyn Agliotti Δ  Netherlands Hockey 2000, 2008, 2012 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s) Came out publicly in 2011.[148][149]
Nadine Angerer  Germany Football 2000, 2004, 2008 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Angerer won her first two bronze medals as reserve goalkeeper without playing a match; she was the main goalkeeper in 2008 when she won her third bronze.[150] She came out in 2010.[151]
Carl Blasco Δ  France Triathlon 2000, 2004 Came out shortly before the 2000 Olympics.[152][153]
Balian Buschbaum  Germany Athletics 2000 Competed in women's events and came out as a transgender man in 2007, retiring early in order to undergo hormone treatment and transition.[154] He continued to coach until 2013.[155]
Robert Costello  United States Equestrian 2000 [67][156]
Orlando Cruz  Puerto Rico Boxing 2000 Came out widely in 2012.[157]
Eleni Daniilidou  Greece Tennis 2000, 2004, 2008 [67][158]
Imke Duplitzer Δ  Germany Fencing 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Came out before 2004 Games.[159][160]
Inka Grings  Germany Football 2000 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Grings is openly bisexual, and has had a relationship with Linda Bresonik.[161][162]
Peter Häggström  Sweden Athletics 2000 Came out in 2009.[163]
Mathew Helm Δ  Australia Diving 2000, 2004, 2008 2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Helm achieved both his medals at the 2004 Games.[164][165] He was widely out when competing.[166][167]
Kelly Holmes  Great Britain Athletics 2000, 2004 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Holmes came out in 2022, at the time describing her fears of being reprimanded by the military (which she had been in prior to her sporting career) if she came out earlier, as well as worrying about isolation in the sporting community as she did not know any out sportspeople when she was competing. LGBT+ campaigners noted that her interview highlighted how in 2022 there were still barriers to coming out.[168]
Mia Hundvin Δ  Norway Handball 2000 3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Entered a civil partnership with Danish opponent Camilla Andersen shortly before the 2000 Games; they were the first spouses to directly compete against each other at the Olympics.[106] They separated three years later; Hundvin has since had relationships with men.[169]
Steffi Jones  Germany Football 2000, 2004 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Came out in 2013.[170]
Johan Kenkhuis Δ  Netherlands Swimming 2000, 2004 2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Kenkhuis was widely out prior to the 2004 Games.[171]
Lotte Kiærskou Δ  Denmark Handball 2000, 2004 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s) Began openly dating Rikke Skov when Skov joined the Viborg HK handball team in 2003; they split in 2011.[172][173][174]
Stephen Laybutt  Australia Football 2000 Came out after his playing career.[175]
Amélie Mauresmo Δ  France Tennis 2000, 2004 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Came out in 1999, aged 19, upon defeating the world number 1 at the Australian Open, attributing her success to accepting her sexuality.[176][177]
Lauren Meece  United States Judo 2000 Meece came out after competing.[178] She then wrote an op-ed saying that Olympians should not be made to be gay role models, saying that she never needed a gay sporting role model (so this and other reasons athletes have come out are "cop outs" covering "ulterior motives"), and that pride and "gay politics" have no place at the Olympics, after having seen Edinanci Silva harassed about being intersex.[179]
Paul O'Brien  New Zealand Equestrian 2000 [67][180]
Helen Richardson-Walsh Δ  Great Britain Hockey 2000, 2008, 2012, 2016 1st place, gold medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Helen Richardson and Kate Walsh met on the Great Britain hockey team and started dating in 2008. They married in 2013[181] and, in 2016, became the first same-sex married couple to win an Olympic gold medal together.[182]
Kate Richardson-Walsh Δ  Great Britain Hockey 2000, 2008, 2012, 2016 1st place, gold medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Helen Richardson and Kate Walsh met on the Great Britain hockey team and started dating in 2008. They married in 2013[181] and, in 2016, became the first same-sex married couple to win an Olympic gold medal together.[182]
Cheryl Salisbury  Australia Football 2000, 2004 [183]
Victoria Sandell Svensson Δ  Sweden Football 2000, 2004, 2008 Widely out prior to the 2008 Games.[184] Her sister-in-law is teammate Cecilia Sandell.
Therese Sjögran  Sweden Football 2000, 2004, 2008 Has been in a relationship with Malin Levenstad.[185]
Stacy Sykora  United States Volleyball 2000, 2004, 2008 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Came out widely in 2012.[186]
Arjen Teeuwissen Δ  Netherlands Equestrian 2000 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Was widely out prior to competing.[67][75]
Ina-Yoko Teutenberg Δ  Germany Cycling 2000, 2012 Came out in 2012.[187][188]
Ian Thorpe  Australia Swimming 2000, 2004 1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)1st place, gold medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)2nd place, silver medalist(s)3rd place, bronze medalist(s) Thorpe came out as gay in 2014, having often denied this earlier in his career.[189][190] Later that year he gave a Q&A hosted by the International Olympic Committee in which he discussed challenges he faced in swimming because of his sexuality.[191]
Gearoid Towey  Ireland Rowing 2000, 2004, 2008 [192][193]
Ji Wallace  Australia Gymnastics 2000 2nd place, silver medalist(s) Came out in 2005,[194][195] revealed he has HIV in 2012.[196]
Natalie Williams  United States Basketball 2000 1st place, gold medalist(s) [197]
Chris Witty  United States Cycling 2000 Witty has competed in both Summer and Winter Olympics; she was a flagbearer at her last Games in 2006. She has only won medals in speed skating. With her gold in 2002, she also set a world record.[198][199] She lives with partner and fellow former speed skater Frouke Oonk.[200][201]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d Based on the information collected on this page
  2. ^ This includes medals won after 2000.
  3. ^ Where athletes have represented multiple countries, competed in multiple sports, and/or at multiple Games, the country/sport/Games they are sorted by is their first country/sport/Games chronologically.
  4. ^ Based on most golds over total medals, then alphabetically by current surname or common nickname. In cases of medals for demonstration events and honourable mentions in artistic events, these are sorted between one bronze and no medals.

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Sources[edit]

Databases[edit]

International Olympic Committee
Olympedia
Other databases

Literature[edit]

Print media[edit]

Web media[edit]