English rugby player Paul Doran-Jones is the latest straight athlete to appear naked in the British gay magazine Attitude and the latest to say that gay teammates will be embraced if they come out.
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"Of course there are loads of gay guys in sport and when they are ready they will come out knowing it's all accepted," Doran-Jones said.
He described the culture of the locker room, where being naked became routine and where teammates felt comfortable:
There are 45 guys in a squad and we are always around each other with nothing on. You're always walking around naked, it's accepted.
Back in the day there were big baths and we'd all jump into it and have a beer together. Sadly that's died out. But we're all pretty used to each other's bits and pieces.
Doran-Jones called openly gay rugby player Gareth Thomas his hero and I admire how matter of fact he is on the subject. It is amazing how we hear on a regular basis from straight athletes supporting a gay teammate. Such acceptance will make it easier when an athlete in that sport chooses to come out publicly.
