Conor McDermott-Mostowy makes history as first out gay man to compete in Olympic speedskating
American misses the podium but makes a statement by competing. 'I’m proud to be the first [and] only openly gay man in speedskating and the only one on Team USA.' The post Conor McDermott-Mostowy makes history as first out gay man to compete in Olympic speedskating appeared first on Outsports.
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U.S. speedskater Conor McDermott-Mostowy made history Wednesday, becoming the first out gay male Olympic speedskater as he competed in the men’s 1,000 meters.
The Washington, D.C., native failed to podium after failing to recover from a slow start that put him a half-second off the leader, but his top-10 finish placed him second among the American skaters in the event behind gold medalist Jordan Stolz.
“I’ve been wearing the Stars and Stripes for nine years now, but finally get to wear them on the biggest stage in the world, the Olympic Games! Being able to represent my country and community at the Olympics is the greatest honor of my life,” he said via Instagram ahead of his Olympic debut.
“Regardless of my results today, I feel an abundance of pride. I am so proud of myself for getting here after missing the team four years ago. I’m proud to be the first [and] only openly gay man in Speedskating and the only one on Team USA this year. I’m proud to be a part of the best team in the world, Team USA!”
The post included an image of the Olympic Trials 1,000-meter champion wearing a necklace with a silver pendant that spelled out colors that appear on the Pride flag. He wore a silver chain under his speed suit as he glided over the ice in Milan, but Outsports was unable to determine if it was the same necklace depicted in McDermott-Mostowy’s Instagram post.
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The jewelry spoke to McDermott-Mostowy’s personal pride in representing the LGBTQ community on international sports’ largest stage, but, if he did indeed wear it during his skate, it would also represent a clever circumvention of the International Olympic Committee’s rules against political demonstration.
According to Rule 50 of the Olympic Charter, “No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas.” The rule bans those forms of expression during competition, medal ceremonies and the Olympic Opening and Closing ceremonies.
This explains why we don’t see out athletes celebrating with a Pride flag a la Amber Glenn at the U.S. figure skating championships in recent years.
McDermott-Mostowy expounded on why he took pride in representing both Team LGBTQ and the United States at the Milan Games.
“I’ve heard a lot of people say that I ‘must be conflicted’ to be a representative of the United States right now, but I cannot disagree more. I think there is no more [important] time to be a representative of the U.S. on the global stage,” McDermott-Mostowy said. “It is important to demonstrate that the U.S. population is not a monolith. So many of us still hold the values that America, however imperfect in its realization of them, was built on. Those values: integrity, freedom, respect, diversity, compassion, and excellence, are indistinguishable from the Olympic values.”
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The post Conor McDermott-Mostowy makes history as first out gay man to compete in Olympic speedskating appeared first on Outsports.
