When tennis player João Lucas Reis da Silva stepped on to the court at the Australian Open on Monday he made history.
The Brazilian player became the first out gay man to take part in the tournament since it began in 1905. Currently ranked 204th in the world, Reis da Silva is one of the top players in his home country.
The player shared that he was gay in 2024, making him the first male professional tennis player to share information about their same-sex attraction during their playing career. He’d told his family five years earlier.
Reis da Silva is in a relationship with model and actor Gui Sampaio Ricardo. After he came out the player noted that he longer was subjected to homophobic language during tournaments.
He will play as part of the qualifying rounds for the open, with hopes of making it to the top of the Grand Slam tournament. To make it through he must win three matches in a row.
In the first qualifier he lost to Portugal’s Henrique Rocha, 6-2,6-4. Rocha is currently ranked 157th.
