Rio Olympics 2016 is championing LGBT pride right at its tracks, making the whole community alive with love more than ever. Making history, the first married gay couple is competing together as part of Great Britain's hockey team and a Brazilian rugby player was just proposed to by her girlfriend after the finals game was held.
According to Quartz, an estimate of 44 athletes are competing in Rio Olympics 2016, almost doubling the numbers last 2012 Olympics. This is especially remarkable, considering that this year's Olympic games are being held in Brazil, one of the most notorious nations when it comes to LGBT discrimination and violence.
As per The Telegraph, Kate and Helen Richardson-Walsh have been playing hockey together since their teenage years, became a couple in 2008 and have been married for three years now. Prior to the Rio Olympic games and their marriage, they have already competed for the Olympics three times. They are making headlines now and marking history for being the first same sex married couple to participate in the Olympics.
For Kate, their relationship is normal and not much of a big deal for her and Helen and their teammates. She says, as quoted by The Telegraph, “You dye your hair blonde, you dye your hair brown, you’re with a man, you’re with a woman. Who cares? You’re just in love with who you are in love with and that’s the end of it.”
The Telegraph says that Helen's career took a downward curve after suffering from multiple serious injuries and was not able to play for the 2014 World Cup. But thankfully this year, she's back playing with the England hockey team in a more advanced midfield position and is in high hopes to claim victory for the nation.
Meanwhile, The Guardian reports another first in Olympic history: a marriage proposal received by a Brazilian women's rugby sevens player, Isadora Cerullo. The Braziliam team did not reach the knockout rounds but the 25-year-old player celebrated love minutes after the medal ceremony and the first women's rugby sevens final.
Marjorie Enya, serving as manager at Deodoro Stadium and girlfriend of Cerullo, asked Cerullo's hand for marriage. She got her Yes! and sealed their happines with a kiss on the stadium, a beautiful moment that photographers were able to catch.
“She is the love of my life,” Enya said as quoted by The Guardian, “The Olympic Games can look like closure but for me it’s starting a new life with someone."
The couple had been together for two years. When Enya found out that Cerullo was part of the Brazilian team, she knew that she wanted to do something extra special for her girlfriend. The marriage proposal immediately took over social media.
As per Quartz, all the LGBT athletes can find safe refuge in this year's games because of the tight security prepared by the team behind Rio Olympics 2016. As of late, LGBT Brazilians have not been relatively safe in the country.
Do you think that the recent turn of events would help Brazil generally change their views on the LGBT community? Comment below your thoughts and follow Parent Herald for more news and updates.
