Olympic freeskier Gus Kenworthy just came out in a big way

Skier, five time national champion, Olympic silver medalist, and Colorado native, Gus Kenworthy just came out of the closet in a big way. This morning he tweeted his ESPN cover with three very simple and brave words “I am gay.”

I am gay. pic.twitter.com/086ayvChq2

— Gus Kenworthy (@guskenworthy) October 22, 2015

In 2014, Gus walked away from the Sochi Olympics with a silver medal under his belt in men’s freestyle skiing. He was also one of the few that helped rescue the stray dogs in Sochi streets. He told ESPN that he wanted to wait until he was the was the best in the world at freestyle skiing before he came out.

Gus is currently the top freeskier on the planet, an Olympic medalist, and a face of the X Games. He is an elite athlete in a world where sponsors and income are linked to image. For him, coming out could mean that he loses both of those.

“I never got to be proud of what I did in Sochi because I felt so horrible about what I didn’t do,” Kenworthy told ESPN The Magazine. “I didn’t want to come out as the silver medalist from Sochi. I wanted to come out as the best freeskier in the world.”

Gus took a bold, brave stand this morning, and we applaud him. The more visibility we get in the realm of sports the better. But, also we are proud to gain such an inspiring person into Denver’s gayborhood.