famous gay rugby player comes out

ok i wont be talking about myself at all in this post, because something pretty significant (in my opinion)happened in the gay world today. stereotypically gays and sports dont go together. sometimes this is certaintly the case, but overall it is not the case. i mentioned before my love for sports, and i know of lot of gay guys who also love sport, either as a player or spectator. i mentioned that two of my main loves were rugby league and rugby union (yes they are two different sports for anyone reading this who is not from a rugby nation - although they are quite similar and players often change from one sport to the other ). everyone knows that both codes of rugby are very macho games, and homophobia is stereotypically rife . about 15 years ago a brave aussie man named Ian Roberts, at the time one of the highest profile and also respected players in rugby league, came out. this was a huge story not only in Australia, but around the world. Ian was still playing top level rugby league, and was one of (if not the first ) the first professional sportsmen in the world to come out whilst still playing. before him, a select few had come out well after retiring, mostly in america i believe, noone in australian sports had ever come out during or after their career. The response was overwelhmingly positive for Ian. Ian never named names, but admitted in a book he wrote that he knew of several other players who were gay. Given how well he was received, everyone thought there would be many following in his footsteps. To date no other major australian sports star has come out.
So today, rugby union legend Gareth Thomas, who is welsh , came out. Gareth is a welsh hero. he is one of their greatest ever players, and has played more games for Wales than any other player. for those that dont know, Rugby Union is also the national sport of Wales. Gareth , whilst past his prime at 35, is still actively playing in top league of welsh rugby. he is the first top level rugby union player, current or present, that i am aware of, to come out. good on him i say. i hope the support for him is positive, it seems to be so far. apparently his team all knows and support him 100%. the comments from fans ive read on some news websites have all been positive. hopefully others follow in his footsteps, and hopefully what he has done saves not only the minds, but the lives of many young and old gay men in the world who are struggling with their sexuality. good on you gareth!