ABSTRACT
The literature on coming out typically concerns experiences with family and friends, but apart from a few (auto)biographies by elite gay athletes, there is very little published on how gay athletes come out to their sporting peers. Since most sports are infused with ideals and practices associated with hegemonic masculinity and heterosexuality, coming out is likely to present some unique challenges for gay athletes. This paper reports on a preliminary study based on an analysis of online accounts (N = 8) provided by North American gay athletes for a web-based newsletter. Techniques from qualitative research methods, popular with and informed by various feminist, critical, and lesbian and gay psychologists in the UK, are used to make sense of these accounts. A clear pattern emerged across all accounts, incorporating the following key themes: (1) Sport as distraction from sexuality; (2) Invisibility and isolation within sport; (3) Coming out to the team: difficult but rewarding; and (4) Becoming politicised: challenging heterosexism within sport. Discussion centres on the challenges and opportunities facing gay men within sporting contexts and the implications of the analysis for possible psychological interventions with gay athletes. The need for further qualitative research in this area is also underlined. doi:10.1300/J236v11n01_11 [Article copies available for a fee from The Haworth Document Delivery Service: 1-800-HAWORTH. E-mail address: <docdelivery@haworthpress.com> Web-site: <https://www.HaworthPress.com">https://www.HaworthPress.com> © 2007 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.]
