Timothy LeDuc To Make Winter Olympics History As First Openly Non-Binary Athlete
"We've always been here, we have always been a part of sports. We just haven't always been able to be open."
Timothy LeDuc will make U.S. history at the 2022 Winter Olympic Games in Beijing.
The talented figure skater will become the first openly non-binary athlete to compete at a Games when they take to the ice alongside partner Ashley Cain-Gribble.
The pair aren't favourites to win gold in Beijing, but that doesn't matter to LeDuc.
"It's been a really long journey for me, embracing my gender," they said.
"I've had some amazing people in my life help me through that journey.
"But I hope when people see my story, they aren't saying, 'Timothy is the first non-binary person to achieve this level of success in sports'. It's that queer people can be open and be in sports. We've always been here, we have always been a part of sports. We just haven't always been able to be open."
Chinese state-run media have censored LGBTQ+ content in the past, even controversially choosing to blur the rainbow flag during a live television broadcast of the Eurovision Song Contest.
As for LeDuc, he will hope to follow in the footsteps of fellow ice skater Adam Rippon, who became the first openly-gay American to medal at the Winter Games four years ago in Pyeongchang.
"Ashley and I represent an alternative in pairs skating, a different narrative," LeDuc said.
"Often we see the 'Romeo and Juliet' narrative or the 'fragile girl and the strong man' narrative.
"There is nothing necessarily inherently wrong with people doing a romantic programme but sometimes that narrative is centralised in such a way it leaves no room for any other stories to be told, or other narratives or other pair teams are maybe seen as less worthy of points or medals.
"So, we just like to represent a different way and hopefully make more space for other stories to be told in skating."
Canadian footballer Quinn and American skateboarder Alana Smith became the first non-binary Olympians in Summer Games, but LeDuc will make history as the first non-binary Winter Olympian.
Topics: Timothy LeDuc, olympics, Non-binary, Figure Skating, Australia, Winter Olympics
Max Sherry