Davis Atkin, the first Australian pro field hockey player to publicly come out as gay, is moving up in his sport. He’s been named to Australia’s senior national team, reports the Star Observer.
Outsports profiled Atkin last year. A team psychologist inadvertently outed the now-22-year-old to his coach, creating an unexpected obstacle for the standout hockey player.
An avowed skin care enthusiast, Atkin turned to his makeup drawer as a coping mechanism, and started posting shots on social media.
Today, he boasts more than 12,000 followers on Instagram.
“Last year I was in a pretty dark place,” he told me. “Coming and doing that sort of stuff — it’s almost like a relaxation thing, because I don’t have to worry about doing anything else. I’m doing something I love, and it’s just a place where I get to be myself. There’s no one else there looking at me. It’s just me and my phone.”
In the new Star Observer profile, Atkin talks about how he’s adjusted to the role of being a trailblazer.
“I think it’s a very important role to have someone like me being in the gay community that’s now at an international level, it’s not very common,” he said.
Previously, Atkin played for Australia’s under-21 squad, the Burras. He’ll make his debut for the senior team, the Kookaburras, next month in India.
