'Today is the first day of the rest of my life': World-champion skier and Olympic medalist Gus Kenworthy, 24, comes out as gay 

  • World-champion skier Gus Kenworthy has come out as gay in an interview with ESPN the Magazine
  • The 24 year old took home a silver medal at the 2014 Sochi Winter Games in Men's Freestyle Skiing
  • He shared the news with a post on Twitter that included a link to his story and the words 'I am gay' 
  • He wrote on Twitter earlier in the day: 'Today is the first day of the rest of my life'
  • Kenworthy was one of the athletes who helped to rescue and bring home stray dogs from Sochi with the help of his then boyfriend Robin Macdonald

World-champion skier Gus Kenworthy has come out as gay.

The Olympic medalist revealed this in a cover story with ESPN the Magazine, sharing a link to the interview on his Twitter account and writing: 'I am gay.'  

The 24 year old took home a silver medal at the Sochi games in Men's Freestyle Skiing for his performance in the Slopestyle competition.  

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World-champion skier Gus Kenworthy has come out as gay in an interview with ESPN the Magazine

World-champion skier Gus Kenworthy has come out as gay in an interview with ESPN the Magazine

Gus shared his news on Twitter by tweeting 'I am gay' and 'Today is the first day of the rest of my life', pictured above

Gus shared his news on Twitter by tweeting 'I am gay' and 'Today is the first day of the rest of my life', pictured above

Olympic ski slopestyle medalists (L to R) Nick Goepper, Gus Kenworthy and Joss Christensen with David Letterman in February 2014

Olympic ski slopestyle medalists (L to R) Nick Goepper, Gus Kenworthy and Joss Christensen with David Letterman in February 2014

Kenworthy reveals in the interview that he wanted to wait until he was the best in the world at freestyle skiing to finally come out as gay. 

'I never got to be proud of what I did in Sochi because I felt so horrible about what I didn't do,' says Kenworthy. 

'I didn't want to come out as the silver medalist from Sochi. I wanted to come out as the best freeskier in the world.'

Kenworthy says it was difficult at times on tour when he was asked if his girlfriend was in attendance and he had to say no - despite the fact that his boyfriend was there supporting him.

Kenworthy's ex-boyfriend Robin Macdonald shared a supportive post saying how proud he was with a photo of the two and one of the stray dogs they took home (above)

Kenworthy's ex-boyfriend Robin Macdonald shared a supportive post saying how proud he was with a photo of the two and one of the stray dogs they took home (above)

The stress over this would lead to him vomiting before events as he went up in the chairlift according to fellow skier and best friend Bobby Brown. 

'Part of [the stress] is the fact that I've never had a TV boyfriend. That's actually something I want so bad - a TV boyfriend,' says Kenworthy.

It has already been an amazing year for the skier, who finished the season number one despite considering retirement early in the season.

Kenworthy said he called his father with the news he was quitting the sport after a difficult few months that included him not medalling at The X Games and the end of his relationship with his boyfriend.

'In a state like he was in, I told him not to make decisions,' Gus' father Peter recalls telling his son. 

'I said, "Go home, sleep on it and worst case, give yourself another year."'

That decision led to one of the best seasons of his career, and a new passion for his sport.

'I want to be the guy who comes out, wins s*** and is like, I'm taking names,' says Kenworthy.

'I didn't want to come out as the silver medalist from Sochi. I wanted to come out as the best freeskier in the world,' says Kenworthy (above in a February competition)

'I didn't want to come out as the silver medalist from Sochi. I wanted to come out as the best freeskier in the world,' says Kenworthy (above in a February competition)

Shortly after news broke that Kenworthy had come out as gay, he received tweets of support from fellow skiers Tom Wallisch and Sage Kotsenburg, US Freeskiing, the US Olympic Committee and actor Chloe Moretz.

'So proud and amazing to see you so strong !!!!' wrote Moretz.

'Gus Kenworthy couldn't be happier for you.' 

Kenworthy came to international attention during the Sochi games when he and his fellow Americans swept the podium in freestyle skiing - only the third time that had happened in Olympic history.

After returning home he appeared on Today, The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon and The Late Show With David Letterman, as well as the covers of magazines like People and US Weekly.

He and his fellow freestyle medalists were even pictured on a box of Kellogg's Corn Flakes.

He was also one of the athletes who helped to save and bring home many of the stray dogs in Sochi after the Olympic Games with the help of his boyfriend at the time Robin Macdonald.

Macdonald had to spend a month in Sochi after the Olympics in order to complete the necessary paperwork to bring the dogs back to the United States. 

Kenworthy says in the interview that sadly two of the dogs that were brought back died, and the rest he lost when his ex-boyfriend took them following their split. 

Gus Kenworthy was one of the athletes who helped to save and bring home many of the stray dogs in Sochi after the Olympic games
Gus Kenworthy is pictured with some of the dogs

Kenworthy was one of the athletes who helped to save and bring home many of the stray dogs in Sochi after the Olympic games

Kenworthy shared a photo of himself 'choked up' (above) after watching the story of his coming out on ESPN Thursday afternoon

Kenworthy shared a photo of himself 'choked up' (above) after watching the story of his coming out on ESPN Thursday afternoon

He wrote on Instagram Thursday: 'For most of my life I’ve been afraid to embrace that truth about myself. Recently though, I’ve gotten to the point where the pain of holding onto the lie is greater than the fear of letting go, and I’m proud to finally be letting my guard down.

'My sexuality has been something I’ve struggled to come to terms with. I’ve known I was gay since I was a kid but growing up in a town of 2,000 people, a class of 48 kids and then turning pro as an athlete when I was 16, it just wasn’t something I wanted to accept. 

'I pushed my feelings away in the hopes that it was a passing phase but the thought of being found out kept me up at night. I constantly felt anxious, depressed and even suicidal.

'Looking back, it’s crazy to see how far I’ve come. For most of my life I’ve dreaded the day that people would find out I was gay. 

'Now, I couldn’t be more excited to tell you all the truth. Whether you've suspected it all along or it's a complete shock, it’s important for me to be open and honest with you all. 

'Y’all have supported me through a lot of my highs and lows and I hope you'll stay by my side as I make this transformation into the genuine me - the me that I’ve always really been.' 

Macdonald also shared a photo of his ex and one of their dogs on Instagram and wrote: 'After being with @guskenworthy for many years I have learned he is a self obsessed monster and actually the biggest pile of s**t on the planet. 

'He is also my favorite and I will always have much love for you even though we don't see much of each other anymore. Love you Gussy and lots of kisses from Jake and Mishka.'

 

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