Olympian Gus Kenworthy says in a new
interview that he knew he was gay from “an early age.”
The 24-year-old British-born American
freestyle skier won the silver medal at the 2014 Winter Olympics in
Sochi, Russia.
In an interview with UK gay glossy
Attitude,
Kenworthy details the moment he came to terms with his sexuality.
“I definitely knew something from an
early age, and I didn’t necessarily know that that’s what it was
and that I was gay, but I knew that I was different to the other boys
and that I had this attraction,” Kenworthy said. “I remember
going with my family to these hot springs when I was a kid and there
was a lifeguard there who was probably in his 20s, who was really fit
and had, like, big arms and shoulders, which I hadn’t really seen
before I guess – not in a swimsuit! And I was just like ‘Oh my
god, what is happening!’ [chuckles] But I didn’t know whether I
was so drawn to it because I wanted to look like that or to have that
to myself, but I knew I had this pull, and obviously that got more
frequent and stronger as I got older.”
“If I would watch a movie and there
was a love interest I’d always be drawn to the male lead, and I
knew it was something I wasn’t ‘supposed’ to be feeling so I
kept quiet about it. I think it was 16 that I really realized ‘this
is what I am’, but that’s also the age I went pro and started
traveling a lot, so it was a hard time to accept it.”
“But I remember almost being ready to
come out at that time. I used to drive to hockey games with my dad,
just the two of us, and we always had a good dynamic between us, and
I remember wanting to say something, but just not having the words,
or the courage. Also remember feeling that I didn’t want to come
out because I hadn’t been with a guy in any form, and I didn’t
want to tell people and have them go ‘Oh you’re sleeping with
guys?’ because I hadn’t; I’d never even kissed a boy,” he
added.
Kenworthy also discussed how he met his
first boyfriend.
“I had no idea he was gay or
interested at all, we just became friends, and one night we’d been
out to the bars and had a few drinks, and we're staying at a friend’s
and sharing a pull-out couch, and I kinda just thought I’m gonna
kiss him, and if he punches me in the face I can play it off as
having one too many to drinks or just being an idiot. But it ended
up being reciprocated and it started a five-year relationship,”
Kenworthy explained.