Elena Delle Donne came out publicly last year just before the Olympics. Now she’s hoping her marriage to a woman will help other LGBT people in and out of sports come to accept themselves.
The two will be featured on The Knot and will be the company’s first featured same-sex couple.
"The wedding isn't just about us and our day," Delle Donne told the Associated Press. "It can also impact others and make them happy."
That has a lot to do with liberating other LGBT people and same-sex couples.
"That is the reason why I'm doing The Knot," Delle Donne told AP. "I don't want people to have to have these huge coming outs anymore. It should just be the norm. I love a woman. Or a man and a woman love each other. It should just be no big deal.”
Even in women’s professional basketball, many women feel uncomfortable coming out publicly and sharing their true selves. When Outsports talks to coaches, players and media members covering professional women’s team sports, they routinely claim anywhere from 33% to 50%+ of the women are LGBT. Yet only a fraction of them — just like in men’s sports — are out.
Thankfully many more women have been courageous enough to come out publicly, including some of the sport’s best players like Delle Donne, Brittney Griner and Seimone Augustus.
We have no doubt that Delle Donne being so open and public about her wedding will help countless girls and women, and quite a few men too. Still, Delle Donne isn’t talking about any of the details of the couple’s impending wedding. You’ll just have to wait and see how it all unfolds.
You can follow Elena Della Donne on Instagram @de11edonne, or on Twitter also @de11edonne.
