David Testo is not sure he will play professional soccer again, but he is sure about his sexual orientation, and he is speaking out in the name of change.
Testo, a 30-year-old midfielder who played for the Montreal Impact and Vancouver Whitecaps FC, revealed in a Radio-Canada broadcast Thursday morning that he is gay. In an interview with The Globe and Mail, Testo said that he is going public because of a recent string of suicides among gay teenagers, including Ottawa’s Jamie Hubley, an openly gay figure skater who was bullied at school.
“We have to change, and it’s always been my philosophy that you have to lead the change you want to see,” Testo said. “I felt like it was almost my duty to say that this is okay.”
No active athlete has come out among the big four North American professional sports leagues, the NFL, the NBA, Major League Baseball and the NHL.
Sheryl Swoopes, a three-time Olympic gold medalist and WNBA most valuable player, came out in 2005 while still active. So did professional rugby union player Gareth Thomas, a former captain of the Welsh team, in 2009. Former college basketball player Will Sheridan, who played for the Villanova Wildcats from 2004 to 2007, has said that his teammates were aware that he was gay, and that it was never an issue.
Testo said he is not aware of another gay player in North American professional soccer, but believes that the majority of his teammates and opponents were aware of his orientation during the latter years of his career.
“For everyone going through this, it’s a big weight on your shoulders, where you can’t be who you are, and who you want to be,” he said. “Change is not going to happen until people start stepping up and saying: ‘I’m gay, and I’m a soccer player.’”
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