Olympian Kerron Clement came out as gay
on National Coming Out Day.
The 33-year-old track and field star
spoke about his sexuality for the first time publicly during a Nike
event to celebrate the installation of a rainbow-colored track at Los
Angels City College, LGBT sports blog Outsports reported.
“I was hiding that part [of me]
because of what society thought,” Clement
said. “But it's okay to be that way. Nothing is wrong with
loving someone of the same gender. Love is love. I have an attraction
to men. It's who I am and it's what made me become the athlete I am
today.”
Clement has won gold medals at the 2008
and 2012 Olympics. From 2005 to 2018, Clement held the world record
for the 400-meter indoor sprint.
Clement added that he's speaking out
now because he no longer cares what society thinks about sexual
minorities.
“As I've gotten older, I started
caring less and less [about what people think], and now in my 30s, I
thought it's time to finally be free. Plain and simple,” he said.
“I do identify as a professional gay
track and field athlete, and it's made me become who I am today,”
he said.