Rice Not Nice
Triple Olympic gold medallist Stephanie Rice made a tearful apology last month and insisted she was not homophobic after posting an offensive tweet about Australia’s Tri-Nations win over South Africa. Rice landed herself in hot water when she posted ‘Suck on that F**gots!’ on her twitter feed, sparking outrage and condemnation from the community. Openly-gay footballer Ian Roberts called Rice an ‘idiot’, however out Olympic gold medallist diver Matthew Mitcham defended her saying he didn’t think she was homophobic and she had made the comment in haste. Official sponsors distanced themselves from Rice as the luxury car brand Jaguar axed their sponsorship.
Surf’s Out at Coffs
Australian LGBT surfers will be flocking to the coastline of Coffs Harbour this month for the CoastOut Surfing competition. The three-day long gender and sexuality diverse-specific surf event will have four divisions; Open Men’s and Open Women’s and a Junior Boys and Junior Girls division. Organiser Todd Buttery said Coast Out would add a different element to the LGBT calendar. Coast Out will include various parties, a Fairday and a beach carnival spanning from October 29 to 31. For more information, visit www.coastout.com.au.
Benn Dorrington
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