RealGM

Posted: **Thu Oct 4, 2012 2:09 pm**

Pretty rare to see an active athlete announce he's gay.
http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2012/10/3/34 ... -contender

Sexual orientation in boxing, well, in any sport really, has always been a touchy subject. Rare is the athlete who "comes out" as homosexual during his active pro career.

However, Orlando Cruz released a statement tonight coming out as a gay man and it's actually quite a great read:

"I've been fighting for more than 24 years and as I continue my ascendant career, I want to be true to myself. I want to try to be the best role model I can be for kids who might look into boxing as a sport and a professional career. I have and will always be a proud Puerto Rican. I have always been and always will be a proud gay man."

Posted: **Thu Oct 4, 2012 2:11 pm**

Awesome. Good for him.

Posted: **Thu Oct 4, 2012 4:05 pm**

Never seen him fight.

Hardcore boxing fans, I see he's WBO's #4 featherweight in the rankings, is he good?

Posted: **Fri Oct 5, 2012 1:20 am**

boxrec suggests he isn't anything special.

good for him, though. I'm guessing Puerto Ricans are asswipes when it comes to this issue?

Posted: **Fri Oct 5, 2012 3:21 pm**

Uh, well I like Puerto Ricans, and they are great people and make great yummy food,
but is a macho-ey kind of culture and this won't go over well there.

Still, this guy has the right to be able to live how he wants, so good for him.
He's fully aware of the reception he'll get back at home.
(And anyone in the sport and that knows him or spars with him probably already knows.)

Posted: **Fri Oct 5, 2012 3:26 pm**

I ask because there are some Latin cultures that are generally OK with homosexuals or transgenderism...Brazilians, Spanish...I thought maybe PRs were another exception.

Posted: **Fri Oct 5, 2012 4:00 pm**

PR's starting to shed their historical opposition to homosexuality, much like Cuba. San Juan and Ponce both have official gay districts and there's new discrimination policies in place.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_right ... an_islands

Posted: **Fri Oct 5, 2012 4:14 pm**

I wonder what things people may yell at him at weigh-ins down there.
Rival corners?
Fans?

Not pretty.

Posted: **Fri Oct 5, 2012 8:01 pm**

SDM wrote:PR's starting to shed their historical opposition to homosexuality, much like Cuba. San Juan and Ponce both have official gay districts and there's new discrimination policies in place.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_right ... an_islands

Oh yeah, of course, Cuba too...

Interesting.

It seems like the further south you go starting at Mexico, the better. Central America is terrible, Chile eases up, Argentina and Brazil are awesome.

Posted: **Sun Oct 7, 2012 2:12 am**

sorry I can't help it, had to post this

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AJNAhVH_2GE[/youtube]

RealGM

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