Ricky Martin's revelation that he is gay has prompted mostly cheers.

The thirty-eight-year-old father of two admitted he is gay in a statement both in English and Spanish on his website. The posting was also linked to from his Twitter account.

“I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man,” Martin said. “I am very blessed to be who I am.”

The Puerto Rican star began his singing career in the teen group Menudo and crossed over to English with the wildly popular single Livin' la Vida Loca in 1999.

Jarrett Barrios, president of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), said Martin's coming out “can lead to greater acceptance for countless gay people in the US, in Latin America and worldwide.”

“When someone like Ricky Martin comes out, hundreds of millions of people now have a cultural connection with an artist, a celebrity and, perhaps most importantly, a father who happens to be gay,” he said.

Barrios can certainly identify. The Cuban-American is married to political consultant Doug Hattaway and the couple is raising two teenage sons.

“Finally!” celebrity blogger Perez Hilton said, reminding readers that Martin's sexual orientation has been the subject of long-time rumors.

Rumors about Martin's sexuality go back as far as the late 90s. In a 2000 The Mirror interview, Martin denied he was gay: “I guess these rumors [about being gay] were started by people who don't have a life, or perhaps it's because they want me to be like them and I'm not. I try not to pay attention to any of these allegations. I could have been married with kids for years or have 27 girlfriends, and if people still want to go around saying that I'm gay, they will.”

“We're very happy for you, Ricky,” Perez, who is openly gay, added.

Martin said writing his memoirs had prompted him to come out of the closet. He said he kept his sexuality a secret because he believed it would hurt his career.

But readers at the BBC's Have Your Say website mostly disagreed, saying being gay was no longer an issue.

“This is such a non-story,” Will Haas wrote.

“I can't see that 'coming out' will make any difference,” A-Brit-in-Mexico wrote. “It didn't for Elton John in the 70s. People still bought his recordings knowing he was gay.”