Swedish footballer (European soccer)
Anton Hysen encourages gay youth to be themselves in a
behind-the-scenes look at an upcoming photo spread for UK gay glossy
Attitude.
Hysen, the son of former Liverpool
defender Gleen Hysen, announced he's gay in March during an interview
with the football magazine Offside, just
weeks after English cricketer Steven Davies made a similar
announcement.
The 20-year-old Utsiktens BK player is
the first high-profile Swedish football player to announce that he is
gay. He joins several top European athletes who have publicly outed
themselves during their careers, including 24-year-old Davies and
Welsh rugby star Gareth Thomas, who
came out gay nearly two years ago.
“For the young people that are
worried to come out I just have really this to say,” Hysen said in
the 1-minute-25-second video. “Just be yourself. Step up. Do not
let anybody like take you down or step on you for anything.”
“Just be yourself, that's all that
matters,” he added. “They don't like it, then doesn't matter,
it's about yourself and being comfortable in [sic] yourself.” (The
video is embedded in the right panel of this page.)