Orlando Cruz, first active professional boxer to p
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<p>"I developed physically and mentally to take such a big step in my life and in my profession, which is boxing, knowing that it would have pros and cons, highs and lows in this sport that is so macho," he said.</p>
<p>"I kept this hidden for many, many years."</p>
<p>His announcement comes two weeks before the 31-year-old left-hander challenges Mexican boxer Jorge Pazos for the WBO Latino title. Cruz is ranked as the World Boxing Organization&;s No. 4 featherweight fighter and is 18-2-1 with nine knockouts.</p>
<p>Cruz said he met with psychologists and others before making the announcement, adding he has the full support of his family, trainer and manager. He praised his mother and sister for their unconditional love and said his father has always backed him.</p>
<p>"Like every father, he wants his son to be a full-blooded man," Cruz said.</p>
<p>"But he is aware of my preference, my taste."</p>
<p>Pedro Julio Serrano, spokesman for the U.S. based National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, praised Cruz for his decision and said it breaks stereotypes that gay people are not involved in sports like boxing.</p>
<p>"It also gives a lot of hope to young gays who can see in him the integrity and bravery to be who you are and face a society that is often intolerant, especially in this type of sport," he said.</p>
<p>Reaction to Cruz&;s announcement was largely positive across social media, with many praising him for taking what they called a brave step given the sport&;s violent history. Among those who sent messages of support was Puerto Rican singer Ricky Martin, who announced he was gay in 2010.</p>
<p>Some Twitter messages expressed concern for Cruz&;s safety and wondered whether other boxers will be reluctant to fight him. Dommys Delgado, president of the Boxing Commission of Puerto Rico, brushed aside those concerns.</p>
<p>"Orlando has proven to be an excellent boxer with very good chances of becoming a world champion," she said. "We do know that it is a very macho sport. Those who don&;t want to fight with him, well, don&;t fight."</p>
<p>The only other professional boxer who was quoted as saying that he had relations with men and women was U.S. Virgin Islander Emile Griffith, who told The New York Times in 2005 that he struggled with his sexuality. His comments came decades after he ended his 18-year career as a pro boxer.</p>
<p>Griffith is best known for his 1962 fight against Cuban Benny Paret, who taunted Griffith with gay slurs before the bout. Griffith knocked him out, and Paret died 10 days later.</p>
<p>Cruz said he is prepared for the fallout from his announcement, saying many boxers had already suspected he was gay but gave him privacy.</p>
<p>"I&;ve been fighting for more than 24 years and as I continue my ascendant career, I want to be true to myself," he said. "I have always been and always will be a proud gay man."
/surprised
I'm not surprised that OC is gay, I'm just surprised that with the worldwide homophobia in professional sports one of the first sports to have an openly gay competitor would be Boxing, a sport that is biggest in America.
Isn't Europe supposed to be more 'liberal' in this sense than America?
The only professional footballer that I am aware of who admitted to being gay, Justin Fashanu, killed himself because of the pressure he was submitted to on and off the field.
On a lighter note, it's Caturday.
"You don't like it? Go somewhere else! To another universe where the rules are simpler, philosophically more pleasing, more psychologically easy. I can't help it, OK!?" -Richard Feynman
I fail to see how preferring the meat sword makes you less than a full blooded male, but.....
Good for him, I guess. I don't care, I think boxing is stupid, but well, if punching another person in the face for no good reason is related to what you do out of the box thing, fine. the only real backlash I see might be in sponsors, does boxing have sponsors ? If anything, others will line up to "Teach that faggit a lesson', so he probably won't run out of challengers.
collecting 
Isn&;t Europe supposed to be more &;liberal&; in this sense than America?</p>
<p>The only professional footballer that I am aware of who admitted to being gay, Justin Fashanu, killed himself because of the pressure he was submitted to on and off the field.
Sexual assault charges also contributed to Fashanu's suicide, as well as the pressure.
Anyway, yeah, hopefully he won't be made to regret the decision. If it goes well for him, others will probably be less fearful of admitting they're gay.
I look forward to the day that stuff like this isn't news worthy. In the mean time, it takes a lot of thinking and courage for any athlete to come out. There are many ways to 'punish' athletes who don't fit the mold. Especially when there are any kinds of judging going on - refs (I think that's what they are called) can delay making calls, or choose to call borderline penalties or choose to overlook the opponents borderline offenses and so forth. There are many ways his career can be harmed by this, some much more subtle than others. I hope all goes well for him.
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Pretty much this. A man can be a man and be gay as long as he conducts himself with respect and treats others with respect. I hate the machismo style bullshit that makes people think you can only be a man if you fight all the time or have a lot of women and says being gay makes you less of a man.
I really hope he doesn't face too much backlash over this or have someone hurt him for being gay. There's no reason people should treat him any differently than they would have before they knew this.
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Thank you anon ;_; x10 March 4/21/21 (RIP Storm-buddy the leopard gecko- you lived a great 16.5 years.)
Great to see that people like Orlando and others are making public announcements of their sexuality while they are still competing.
And just to let people know, Australian Rugby League player Ian Roberts announced he was gay in 1995 and Welsh Rugby player Garth Thomas announced he was gay in 2009, so it is nice to see more male athletes coming out, particularly in sports that do have quite high levels of institutionalised homophobia.
http://msn.foxsports.com/boxing/story/orlando-cruz-wins-first-fight-since-announcing-gay-101912
<p>These last two weeks have weighed heavily on Orlando Cruz.</p>
<p>But as soon as he walked out to a cheering crowd displaying flags of his native Puerto Rico, boxing&;s first openly gay fighter could finally breathe and do what he came to do, slugging his way to a victory by unanimous decision over Jorge Pazos.</p>
<p>"That was my moment, my opportunity, my event," Cruz said Friday night after the bout, his mother Dominga Torres-Rivera seated beside him. "And I won."</p>
<p>Cruz was touched by the support on display at the Kissimmee Civic Center outside of Orlando, the latest in a continual outpouring since his announcement two weeks ago that made him the first active male athlete in a major sport to come out.</p>
<p>"I was very happy that they respect me. That&;s what I want — them to see me as a boxer, as an athlete and as a man in every sense of the word."</p>
<p>Cruz&;s declaration has garnered plenty of attention and interview requests for the WBO&;s fourth-ranked featherweight, as well as public support from everyone from former Olympic teammate Miguel Cotto to singer Ricky Martin.</p>
<p>"With all that&;s been going through my life the last two weeks, I have no excuses," Cruz said. "It did affect me, going here, going there. It did affect me."</p>
<p>But Cruz (19-2-1, nine KOs) looked comfortable once he stepped into the ring, quickly negating Pazos&; longer reach with his own fleet feet. As a result, Pazos (20-4, 13 KOs) spent most of the night lunging after the smiling Cruz. Pazos threw more punches, but Cruz made his count.</p>
<p>Though the Mexican Pazos held his own for much of the fight, it was Cruz standing on the ropes playing to the adoring crowd moments later with a 118-110, 116-111, 118-110 decision.</p>
<p>"He&;s a boxer who moves too much, he knows how to box and he has good legs," Pazos said. "I couldn&;t get him."</p>
<p>Cruz is hoping this victory will get him a shot at a bigger match in the near future.</p>
<p>"This fight&;s going to open my door for a world title fight," Cruz said. "That&;s my dream, my mom&;s dream, my community&;s dream and my team&;s."</p>
<p>And Cruz seems to be more at ease with his new position as a gay role model, no longer hiding who he is in one of the world&;s most macho sports.</p>
<p>"I&;m only one person," Cruz said. "I feel happy with where I am. I&;m free. I&;m more at peace."
I guess this writer isn't a Rugby fan.
Just watched that fight this morning. OC looked great. He looked a little nervous walking out, but the crowd picked him right up and he started that fight out as energetically as he usually does. Stuck it out for a hard win. I'm glad to hear Miguel Cotto isn't a jerk too.
Yeah, boxing has sponsors, but I'm sure if anything he's getting more sponsorship offers since his announcement. All the media coverage he's getting, plus the fact that he just won the Latino featherweight title and seems to be in line for another WBO featherweight title shot, it would be a horrible decision for his sponsors to pull out on him right now, both financially and PR-wise.
+1 Muhammad Ali "I know where I'm going and I know the truth, and I don't have to be what you want me to be. I'm free to be what I want."
"You don't like it? Go somewhere else! To another universe where the rules are simpler, philosophically more pleasing, more psychologically easy. I can't help it, OK!?" -Richard Feynman