Blake Skjellerup New Zealand Olympic speed skater Blake Skjellerup has come out in an interview with Australian magazine DNA. According to Outsports, the 24-year-old short track skater has told the magazine he walked around Vancouver during the Games hand in hand with his boyfriend and also visited PRIDE House, the gay meeting place at Whistler. Skjellerup said he would have told any interviewer during the Games he was gay if asked, but he felt coming out publicly before might have affected his focus and potential sponsors. Blake's teammates knew he was gay and, although some didn't want to hear about it, he did not face discrimination. "The first real issue was that I was there to compete - to focus on my skating - and to not have the focus on my sexuality," he says. Skjellerup has told DNA he suffered homophobic taunts from some fellow athletes early in his career, but gets along with them well now. He acknowledges homophobia exists in sport, which makes role models all that more important. "Gays are too often given a stereotype. Back when I was 18, and becoming serious about my sport and my Olympic goals, if I could have seen an athlete like myself out there – with whom I could relate to – my journey would have been a lot easier. "Johnny Weir meets a specific stereotype, I meet a specific stereotype and Gareth Thomas meets another. Being gay is just like any other personality trait: it's multifaceted. I can't personally relate to Weir or Thomas, and nor will many other young gay athletes out there. But maybe some of them will see something in me to relate to. The more types we provide, the more we'll appeal to people who are struggling with their sexuality.” Skjellerup, who is based in Canada, was New Zealand's only short track speed skater at the Vancouver Olympics. His best result was qualifying for the quarter-finals in the 10,000 metres.
Credit: GayNZ.com Daily News staff
First published: Thursday, 6th May 2010 - 9:48am