With 193 openly LGBTQ competitors setting a new benchmark, there have been reports of the public using a gay dating app to ‘out’ LGBTQ+ Olympic athletes without their consent.
Record Number of Out Olympians
Recent data from the LGBTQ sports website OutSports shows that at least 193 Olympic athletes are officially out of the closet while competing at the 2024 Paris Olympics. This year also has a record number of out-male Olympians competing.
Looking Back at Tokyo
In the previous Summer Olympics in Tokyo 2021, there were at least 186 out-competitors, but the list started smaller at 121 before the games kicked off.
Gathering the Data
The number increased when OutSports obtained further information about athletes around the world who had already come out, which is why we continue to see the number increase this summer as well.
Growing Numbers
This year, the number of out athletes started at 144 but increased to 175 last week before the Opening Ceremony, ultimately reaching 193 openly queer athletes by August 1st.
Equestrians Continue to be Queer Leaders
Continuing its trend leading the way for male queer athletes, 8 of the 20 out-male Olympians are Equestrians.
Queer Women Remain Majority
Queer women athletes remain the majority, with over 150 out and competing. Impressively, the U.S. women’s basketball team and the Australian women’s soccer team each have 12 out players, with queer women making up more than half of both teams.
A More Welcoming Place
Outsports co-founder Cyd Zeigler said, “Given how many lesbians are in women’s elite level sports, it’s just been a more welcoming place than men’s sports for a long time, just because of the huge percentage of elite level athletes, particularly in Western culture, who are LGBTQ in women’s sports.”
Benefit of the Doubt
Zeigler emphasized that despite the toxic history of “locker room talk,” he’s noting a shift within the men’s teams as well.
Locker Room Talk
Zeigler said, “That’s the biggest thing that people are finally starting to see, that despite the nonsense that goes on in some men’s locker rooms, it doesn’t reflect an actual level of acceptance. The level of acceptance is higher than what they think”.
Prominent Out Athletes
Prominent out and proud athletes include British diver Tom Daley, track star Sha’Carri Richardson, and U.S. trans nonbinary runner Nikki Hiltz. Hiltz recently achieved the second-fastest time in the American women’s 1,500-meter race during the Olympic Trials. After the race, Hiltz stated, “This is bigger than just me. … I wanted to run this one for my community.”
Sharing the Love and Support
They continued, “All the LGBT folks, yeah, you guys brought me home that last hundred [meters]. I could just feel the love and support.”
Hiltz Not Alone
Hiltz is not the only nonbinary athlete competing in Paris, according to the data collected by OutSports. U.S. women’s rugby player Kris Thomas and Canadian soccer star Quinn are also out as nonbinary, and Quinn made history as the first openly trans athlete to receive an Olympic medal (gold, nonetheless) at the Tokyo games.
Other Factors at Play
Several factors could influence the number of trans athletes at this year’s games, including bans on trans women competing in the women’s category and the removal of softball as an Olympic sport.
No More Softball
During the 2020 Tokyo Games, there were 8 LGBTQ women competing in softball. Additionally, the Swedish women’s soccer team with 4 LGBTQ players did not qualify for the Paris games.
The Queerest Sport
Women’s soccer remains the queerest sport across all countries at this year’s Olympics, with 45 players out. Australia has 12 soccer players out, with Brazil trailing behind at eight players and six from Spain.
Times are Changing
Zeigler said that the Australian women’s soccer team “might be the most LGBTQ people we’ve ever seen on an Olympic team.”
Dating App Concerns
LGBTQ+ athletes and advocates have grown increasingly concerned that people are attempting to “out” athletes that remain in the closet by intentionally setting up Grindr and other queer dating apps to sleuth.
Safety Risk
This is a major concern for athletes that may come from a country where being queer is severely looked down upon, or worse, illegal and seriously dangerous.
Protecting Our Athletes
Grindr agreed to disable all location-based features in the Olympic Village and all other official Olympic areas in order to ensure LGBTQ+ athletes can connect “authentically without worrying about prying eyes or unwanted attention.”
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