Ellia Green, an Olympic gold medalist rugby player at the 2016 Summer Games, came out publicly as transgender this week as part of the Bingham Cup Summit. The Bingham Cup is the world’s largest LGBT rugby tournament, held every two years.
“I promised myself that when my rugby career ended, I would continue to live the rest of my life in the identity and the body that I that I know I am meant to be in,” Green said. According to a release, Green lives in Sydney, Australia, with his wife and newborn child; He competed in the Olympic Games for the Australian women’s national team.
Green is the rare Olympian to come out as transgender, even after his career is over, with American decathlete Caitlyn Jenner being the most well-known.
“Being open about my gender identity is a really difficult thing to do these days,” Green said. “All you have to do is turn on the TV, look on social media platforms, and you can see the amount of bullying, harm, and discrimination that goes on about gender identities. It’s extremely harmful, so for someone to be open and honest about their identity to the public eye is absolutely daunting.”
No doubt Green adding his face to the evolving story of trans people around the world will inspire someone to get through their own struggles.
You can follow Ellia Green on Instagram.
