Outsports Radio

We always talk about the dominoes falling as LGBT athletes, coaches and members of the media come out publicly. Everyone time someone shares their true self with the world, more LGBT people - and, frankly, many others - feel the strength to be true to themselves and the people around them. In the last week, a couple major sports institutions wrote another LGBT chapter in their histories. ESPN's NBA commentator Israel Gutierrez has been struggling for a while with how to come out publicly. He finally took the leap a week before his wedding to his partner.  Bobby Petrino, Jr., came out publicly as well in the last week after talking with Outsports' Jim Buzinski for months. Petrino is the son of Louisville's head football coach. Both of these men, in addition to rugby's Sam Stanley, who came out in the last couple weeks, have lived their lives openly in private circles and sometimes on social media. You just had to know where to look. Now their connections to big-time sports are helping to continually push th

Outsports began in 1999 as a vehicle for Outsports' founders Cyd and Jim to discuss the NFL and we've been covering the league ever since. Last year we reached a milestone by being credentialed for the Super Bowl. On this Podcast we make our bold predictions for the NFL season. Will Peyton Manning shine or fade? Can the Patriots repeat? Why the Seahawks are in for a rough season, plus many more. We also look at the gay issues surrounding the league. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 2004, then-Dartmouth lacrosse goalie Andrew Goldstein wrote a powerful piece for Outsports about coming out to his lacrosse team. Since then, Andrew has played professional lacrosse, moved to Los Angeles, got married and is now on his way to curing cancer. Earlier this year he met Braeden, a young lacrosse player who was struggling with being gay. Goldstein knew he had to do something to help Braeden. This Sunday, Aug. 30, ESPN will air the story of Andrew, Braeden and the Courage Game that helped save young Braeden's life. We'll talk to Andrew about the story and his last 10 years. This week a closeted gay high school football official in Louisiana wrote about his experiences there with homophobia and sexism. More and more gay officials are now talking with us about the environment they face from fans and from their fellow referees. We'll talk about the forgotten corner of the sports world and how we'll make it better. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It's been a big week for gays in pro sports: --Michael Sam, the first openly gay player drafted by an NFL team, abruptly quit football for now when he left the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL. Is this the end of the line for Sam's dreams of playing pro football. --Minor League baseball had a first when Dabid Denson came out as gay for the Milwaukee Brewers rookie minor team. Denson is the first gay player affiliated with a Major League Team. --Keegan Hirst became the first openly gay British rugby league player when he came out this week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Last year at this time, Michael Sam was in an NFL training camp and appeared to be on track to be the first openly gay player. A year later he is in the Canadian Football League and the NFL seems a long way away. Has the "gay moment" passed in the NFL? What more needs to be done? We also examine former NFL running back Craig James' lawsuit claiming his religious beliefs were violated for opposing same-sex marriage. Finally, since Outsports started with an NFL post 16 years ago, we will discuss the story lines we find most intriguing heading into the season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A recent report said that two gay NFL players are refusing to come out publicly as gay because they don't want a lot of media attention for any kind of big announcement. It's an interesting revelation that both reflects and belies what we think we know about professional athletes. On the one hand they want all the attention they can get to maximize exposure. Exposure means more of the all-mighty dollar that so many of them seek in the short span of their careers. On the flip side, we often hear that athletes don't want to be known as the "gay athlete" but just want to be known for their athletic accomplishments.  We discuss the idea of the media keeping athletes in the closet, and also the impact that big-name professional athletes can have when they come out publicly. Plus, we have the growing attention being paid to trans issues in sports and the generosity of one young gay professional athlete named Robbie Rogers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week's podcast hits a variety of topics - Caitlyn Jenner accepting the Arthur Ashe Courage Award at the ESPYs and the mini-controversy surrounding it. We look at what her speecg means for trans rights. We also ask when Michael Sam will finally see playing time for the Montrel Alouettes. Did he make a mistake in leaving the team? We examine the continuing fascination with 20-year-old rumors about Troy Aikman's sexuality, which still draws readers to Outsports. It's also been a summer where more and more young athletes are coming out. The latest is a college swimmer. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Women's World Cup brought some much-needed attention to female athletes and LGBT people in sports. The final was the most-watched soccer broadcast in American TV history. Plus, with several out players - namely Megan Rapinoe and Abby Wambach - and an out head coach, the American team embraced its diversity. Will the event have a lasting effect on the perceptions of women's sports and LGBT athletes? With so much talk about women's sports lately, Dave Zirin has written a piece about his refusal to "defend" women's sports any longer. What are the best ways for supporters to help women's sports without feeling the need to "defend" their existence Anna Aagenes, a former college athlete and current member of the You Can Play team, joins Cyd Zeigler as guest co-host to discuss these issues and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Men's water polo and rowing are two of the sports most associated with hypermasculine, bro jocks. Being openly gay in these sports can be problematic. We talk with two openly gay athletes who have forged their path and been embraced. Noah Ratliff is a water polo player from Oregon who just graduated high school. He is on the Junior Olympic water polo team and will play in college. His coming out was heralded by USA Water Polo. Chris Kelley, an Ithica rower, was outed at a party and then struggled to fit in with his team. But he has turned them around and founded a campus group for LGBT athletes and allies. These are two athletes who symbolize pride month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Michael Sam shocked everyone when he left the training camp of the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League a day before their first preseason game. The openly gay defensive lineman who became famous after coming out prior to the NFL Draft has not spoken about why he left the team. The Alouettes have placed him on the suspended list, but are keeping the door open for his return. We will look at what Sam has done and the ramifications for his career and the gay sports movement. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This podcast is brought to you by AT&T. Mobilizing Your World. The Vanity Fair cover featuring Caitlyn Jenner certainly got some attention this week. The former Olympic decathlon champion completed her public transition by appearing in a gorgeous photo, shot by Annie Liebovitz. The reaction from the media and the public was quite positive.  Yet there were some hiccups along the way. Awareness of trans issues lags behind the understanding of sexual orientation in America - some people were simply uneducated about how to discuss Jenner's transition, while others were outright cruel.  Nick Adams from GLAAD joins us to talk about the reaction by the media to Jenner's story, some of the key pitfalls he wants to see the media avoid, and any mistakes Outsports has made along the way in attempts to cover the story with respect. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Clemson University football coach Dabo Swinney caused some controversy this week when he was to be honored by a South Carolina lobbying group opposed to gay rights and same-sex marriage. A petition was started urging him to cancel and he did on his own days later, saying he didn't want to be a distraction and did not want to seem to endorse all the group's views. It raises the question of what responsibility a coach has to a diverse student body and how that might clash with his beliefs. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today's episode is brought to you by AT&T. Mobilizing Your World. If 2014 was the year of the LGBT athlete on Outsports, 2015 is becoming the year of the Christian college. Just this past week two stories have developed that again put the policies and practices of religious institutions in the spotlight. Hours after dismissing a priest for supporting the NOH8 campaign, Seton Hall signed openly gay basketball player Derrick Gordon, leaving many to wonder about double standards and how Gordon will be treated by students, faculty and administrators at the devout Christian college. While the policy has been around for at least a year, the student-athlete handbook at LeTourneau University has come under the spotlight. The handbook bans gay athletes from dating, and it prohibits any athlete from publicly supporting same-sex marriage.  All the while, these colleges are allowed to reap the benefits and rewards of membership in the NCAA, which claims to support diversity and inclusion. Learn more about your ad

While huge improvements have been made in welcoming gays and lesbians in sports, much still needs to be done, a new study finds. Outsports is joined by two gay former college football players who will discuss the survey and its implications. For example, 80% of participants witnessed or experienced homophobia in sport (both straight and LGB). We look at why LGB people still fear coming out even though those that do report widespread acceptance. Michael Sam and Jason Collins have had huge impacts but the culture in the locker room is still one of fear for many. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today's episode is brought to you by AT&T. Mobilizing Your World. Hillsdale College is considered one of the most conservative colleges in the country. Two years ago Derek Schell, a member of the men's basketball team, came out at the Division II school. This week he got an email sent from the school's chaplain asking him and others to pray against the "evil" of same-sex marriage. The email was allegedly written by a student and sent out to the entire campus through the chaplain's email address. The incident reflects a growing conversation about Christian Evangelism and the LGBT community. Derek joins us to talk about his experiences at the school and what he hopes is done to ensure inclusion of all people on the Hillsdale campus. While he graduated a year ago, the impact of the school on his life is still being felt today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today's episode is brought to you by AT&T. Mobilizing Your World. At Outsports we've noticed a powerful reaction every time we post stories about young LGBT athletes. Our latest story, of two gay high school athletes at a West Virginia prom, was shared over 40k times on social media. What is it about these stories that resonates so strongly with so many readers? Plus, Bruce Jenner had a big night last week as he came out publicly as trans in an ABC interview with Diane Sawyer. What did America learn about trans issues, and will his revelation have an impact on America's treatment of trans people? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With the Supreme Court set to debate gay marriage next week, we talk to Tanner Williams, a University of Oklahoma pole vaulter. This June, Tanner and his husband Scott celebrate their first anniversary. Tanner talks about how pole vaulting and his faith in God saved him in his homophobic town. His religion is important to him even as others use Christianity to keep gays down. We explore Tanner's story and the role of religion in the debate over gay rights. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Fear. Depression. Anxiety. Thoughts of suicide. These are some of the emotions gleaned from closeted gay and lesbian coaches Outsports talked to during the men's Final Four in Indianapolis. Despite the progress society has made on gay issues, these coaches feel that their careers would be over if they ever came out publicly. So they hide or contemplate quitting the sport they love. One female coach said she knows of 50 closeted lesbian coaches. There are no openly gay male or female Division I coaches in the U.S. The podcast also interviews writer Erik Hall, who has profiled several openly gay athletes, his latest being a college cross country runner. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

There are no openly gay athletes in the NFL, NBA, NHL or Major League Baseball. Ditto for major college football, and in the just-concluded NCAA men's tournament, there were no openly gay players. This is not the case in high school, where in the past week Outsports has featured stories about three high school athletes -- a football player in Arizona, a basketball player in Kentucky and a wrestler in Iowa. All three came out on their own terms and it wasn't easy. But they perservered and showed that's it's possible even in high school to be a gay athlete. Which makes the contrast with the pros all that more glaring. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Final Four in Indianapolis is occuring against the backdrop of the debate over gay rights and religious freedom. The NCAA and other sports leagues were strongly opposed to the law, while the NFL has stayed silent. We examine the subject. Across the border in Kentucky, a high school basketball player was chased by members of an opposing team simply for being gay. His team and coach rallied around him but the incident shows gays in sports is still a hot topic.   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices