The Swiss fighter Curdin Orlik, 27, came out of the closet this week in an interview with the magazine TheMagazine. The athlete claimed to be gay – thus becoming the first in Swiss professional sport to do so.
“For too long I ignored who I am,” said the nationally known athlete and considered one of the main current names in fighting in Switzerland. He said he has known about his sexual orientation since he was 12 years old, but thought it was “wrong” and fought against it.
“I heard things at school like 'you gay pig', 'you queer'. Or, in football, 'What a gay thing!'. Even in fight. Nobody really knew what that meant, but if you're gay, you think, 'Oh shit, that's not good,'" he said.
Congratulations on the initiative, Orlik! LGBTphobia must also be combatted in sport.
