The Conversation (0)
Greg Evans
Jun 19, 2022
Basic LGBTQIA+ Terms to Learn in Honor of Pride Month
Indy
Olympic gold medalist, Dame Kelly Holmes has received an outpouring of praise after the 52-year-old athlete announced that she publically announced that she is gay.
The 52-year-old who won the 800m and 1500m Olympic double at the 2004 games told the Mirror: "I needed to do this now, for me. It was my decision. I'm nervous about saying it. I feel like I'm going to explode with excitement. Sometimes I cry with relief. The moment this comes out, I'm essentially getting rid of that fear."
Holmes added on her Instagram account: "This is not new to me, it’s about me Being Me. I hope you will all read the story and show compassion to me and those around you that may struggle with fear every day! Fear is a natural, powerful, and primitive human emotion. It involves a biochemical response as well as a high individual emotional response. Fear alerts us to the presence of danger or the threat of harm, whether that danger is physical or psychological."
Sign up to our new free Indy100 weekly newsletter
Holmes's news has been greeted with great enthusiasm on social media with many praising the athletics greats for her bravery and finally coming out.
\u201cWelcome to the family Dame Kelly Holmes \ud83d\ude4c\n\nhttps://t.co/UHXyNI7tAR\u201d— Paul Brand (@Paul Brand) 1655585868
\u201cSo proud of Dame Kelly Holmes tonight. Coming out is such a hard step to take, although many think it\u2019s not important or shouldn\u2019t be necessary it is. Not just to be yourself, live your truth but to change the world meaning others behind you can do the same. She\u2019s my inspiration.\u201d— Jo Frazer-Wise (@Jo Frazer-Wise) 1655588274
\u201cI absolutely love Dame Kelly Holmes. \u2764\ufe0f\ud83e\udd70 Pure class in every way!\u201d— Mara Yamauchi (@Mara Yamauchi) 1655588282
\u201cI\u2019m so happy that Dame Kelly Holmes feels this way. And let\u2019s not underestimate the impact of one of our greatest ever athletes - those two gold medal-winning performances are iconic - coming out as gay. Love and respect, Queen.\u201d— Nick Levine (@Nick Levine) 1655586564
\u201cPride matters \ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\ud83c\udf08\ud83c\udff3\ufe0f\u200d\u26a7\ufe0f Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes announces she is gay - and kept it hidden for 34 years https://t.co/7dKlz2Lglo\u201d— Minnie Stephenson (@Minnie Stephenson) 1655626233
\u201cReally pleased to see this from Kelly Holmes\n\nTo pretend is hard; doing it for years and years must be bad for mental health - and exhausting.\n\nBut it\u2019s also a missed opportunity for leadership; for inspiration to others that need it.\n\nIt\u2019s so great that this can now all change\u201d— Craig Beaumont \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 (@Craig Beaumont \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6) 1655587478
As well as being an athlete Holmes served in the British Army from age 18 but admitted that she feared what would happen to her if she came out while she was in the military. She also recounted an incident where the British Military Police raided her accommodation in what she believes was an attempt to out her.
Holmes says: "They pulled everything out of your cupboard, turned out the beds and drawers, read letters - everything - trying to catch us out, so we could be arrested, court-martialled and potentially go to jail."
Holmes retired from athletics in 2005, with a record of four gold medals, five silver medals and three bronze medals across Olympic, World, European, Indoor and Commonwealth championships.
Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.
Top 100
x