British tennis Paralympian Greg Slade has publicly come out as gay, ahead of his upcoming appearance the Australian open.
The British champion wheelchair tennis player made the announcement on his Instagram page and shared that he’d be working closely with Pride in Tennis in the future.
Earlier this month Brazilian player João Lucas Reis da Silva made history when he took part in the Australian open qualifying round, become the first top tier player who has been open about their homosexuality to take part. Reis da Silva was knocked out of the competition.
Twenty-three year old Brit Greg Slade won a silver medal at the Paris Olympics playing doubles alongside Andy Lapthorne.
In his post Slade said his sexuality had been known to those close to him for a long time, but was secret to the wider tennis world. He said he felt now was the time to be change that.
“As one of only a handful of gay men playing at the highest levels of tennis, I want to use the privilege and uniqueness of my position to help bring about positive change.” Slade said.
By coming out Slade joins Brazil’s João Lucas Reis da Silva, Switzerland’s Mika Brunold as publicly visible members of the LGBTIQA+ communities in men’s tennis.
Thinking of taking up tennis? Check out Loton Park – Perth’s LGBTIQA+ tennis club in Highgate that has a long and impressive history.
