advertisement
Queer Indian sprinter Dutee Chand sent a powerful message against homophobia as she held an LGBTQIA+ flag at the opening ceremony of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Chand, along with several LGTBQIA+ athletes, held the flags as British synchronised diver and Olympic gold medalist Tom Daley ran with the Queen’s Baton to shed light on homophobia in Commonwealth countries.
In 2014, Chand was banned from competing by the Athletics Federation of India after she failed a hormone test. The test found that she had a high testosterone level, commonly known as ‘hyperandrogegism.'
After her legal team successfully managed to overturn the ruling in 2014, she qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics and, in 2018, she won two silver medals at the Asian Games.
Chand spoke to The Quint in June 2022. She had said:
"Yes, I'm in a gay relationship. It is not a crime to love someone, it's everyone's right. To be able to spend your life with someone you like is what love is all about," Dutee told The Quint.
British athlete Tom Daley has publicly condemned Commonwealth nations for homophobia on the eve of the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony in Birmingham.
Apart from Chand, the documentary titled ‘Tom Daley: Illegal To Be Me,’ features the only openly gay Jamaican national team athlete Glenroy Murray, Bisi Alimi from Nigeria, Moud Goba from Zimbabwe, Jason Jones from Trinidad and Tabago, and Uganda’s Prossy Kakooza.
(With inputs from BBC.)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)
Published: undefined