Candy Parker

LPGA golfer Ryann O’Toole is ready for the new season and every indication is that 2017 may be her best yet. O’Toole has a lot to look forward to, professionally and personally, having finished up 2016 by inking both a new sponsorship deal with the market-disrupting PXG and an engagement to her girlfriend, Gina Marra, a powersports executive.

A California native and natural athlete, O’Toole spent her time as a young girl surfing and wakeboarding, playing softball and basketball, training in karate, and skateboarding. She was bitten by the golf bug at age 12, honing her skills on the local municipal course in San Clemente before heading to UCLA to compete for the Lady Bruins.

After college, she turned pro in 2009 and went on to literally get her “Big Break” on the Golf channel’s reality competition show of the same name in 2011. Also that year, following her sixth place finish on the show, O’Toole was named as a Captain’s Pick to the Solheim Cup Team, where she recorded a 2-0-2 record while proudly representing the United States.

These days, O’Toole has solidified her place on the LPGA tour and makes her home in Scottsdale, Ariz., with Gina and their four dogs, Bogey, Chloe, Tory and Brodie. When not on the golf course, she can typically be found shopping, working out or practicing yoga.

I was able to speak with O’Toole as she prepared to depart for the Pure Silk Bahamas LPGA Classic, which kicks off the 2017 LPGA tour. O’Toole is hoping to build on her three top 10 finishes in 2016 and was happy to indulge in a quick Fast 5 questions before taking on 18 holes on Paradise Island.

1. Do you have a hidden talent? Do tell!

Yes, I do. I can tear an apple in half with my bare hands. I’m also one step below a black belt in karate.

2. If they started offering free trips to the moon tomorrow, would you go?

Definitely! I’m always up for a new adventure and that sounds like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

3. Early bird or night owl?

Early bird all the way. I’m very committed to my fitness routine and that doesn’t allow for too many lazy mornings in bed.

4. If you could have one superpower, what would you want it to be and why?

I think I’d want my superpower to be the ability to take on anyone else’s superpower. That way, I could always disarm them.

5. Finish this sentence. “I think the key to being happy is…”

…following your heart!

If you want to stay up-to-date with O’Toole during the upcoming season, you can visit her website, or follow her on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

The post Fast 5 with LPGA golfer Ryann O’Toole first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Lucy Madison playing basketball as a young girl.

By Lucy J. Madison
special to Lesbian.com

My mother always referred to falling in love as “the thunderbolt.” The first time I fell in love, it was magical, sudden, and entirely unexpected, as if I had been hit by a beautifully energetic bolt of lightning. The feelings were so intense I couldn’t sleep, I didn’t want to eat. I couldn’t think of anything except my newfound love and how we could be together forever.

I was eight years old, and the object of my attention was a leather basketball, twenty-nine inches in circumference, twenty ounces in weight with seams about one-quarter inch apart. I’ll never forget the first time I held that brown leather Spalding ball in my small hands, felt the dimples of the leather, saw how my hand naturally curved to cup it. I stood in rapt fascination in the game aisle of a local store lost in my own thoughts. I barely noticed the snot-nosed boy and his father sniggering at me, a girl with blonde pigtails, cut off shorts, a Joan Jett tee shirt and scabby knees in the sports aisle of the local department store in the summer of 1980.

Over the next thirteen years of my life, I focused most of my energy on learning the game played between the lines of the ninety-six-foot rectangular shining hardwood court. My life revolved around practice, repetitions, studying the greats like Larry Bird, Magic Johnson, and Michael Jordon on television. I ate, drank, slept, and existed entirely for the sport I loved. The sound of a ball hitting the hardwood immediately calmed my nerves. The court was my home, and I was my most authentic self on the court. Shot after shot, drill after drill, year after year, my focus was laser sharp, and my goal was elusive but straightforward: to be the best player on the court every single night.

Lucy Madison playing high school basketball.

While I wasn’t always the best player on the court, I was good enough to become a standout high school player in a Connecticut private school program and ultimately go on to play college basketball. Through four years of college at a small liberal arts Division III school in New York, my eyes were opened to life outside of basketball. I fell in love with writing, ultimate Frisbee, late nights out with best friends, the college newspaper, classes in philosophy and literature, and all the experiences that life in college brings.

During my junior and senior seasons, basketball started to feel like a chore, a time commitment I began to resent. It became a job, a responsibility and something I no longer did for the joy of it. Although I had the opportunity to play professionally in Israel upon graduation, I couldn’t see a career in the game, although I tried to. I tried to imagine how many good years I had left in my body. I tried to imagine myself as a coach or a commentator, or to envision how I could make a good living inside the sport. But try as I might, I could not see the way forward. So, the day I graduated from college was the same day I walked away from the game I loved.

To say I wasn’t prepared for the first year after graduation, away from basketball, is a severe understatement. For the first time in my life since that day when I was eight years old, I did not have basketball to come home to. No practices, no teammates, no National Anthem, no butterflies before the game began, no pre-game rituals or studying film, no competition, no outlet for all my physical energy. All of it was gone in the blink of an eye, disappeared by own doing. I had no one to blame for this but myself.

Looking back, I realize now that I spent the first year after college in an intense mourning period. We often only think of loss regarding the death of a loved one, but other types of losses are equally challenging. My entire identity had been centered on basketball. Without it, I had to learn who I was all over again and proved harder than I could ever imagine.

Over the years, I dipped my toe back into the game. I played in some leagues, coached high school and pee wee girls, at one point had season tickets to the New York Liberty. To an extent, all of it felt false to me. Because I had only known how to give 110 percent to the game, anything less felt inauthentic and, to a certain degree, a colossal waste of time.

Now, as I sit and watch the WNBA playoffs in their twenty-first season and my forty-fourth year of life, I realize that I’ve moved into a different phase – appreciation. I’ve lived, and watched, the women’s game change and improve by leaps and bounds over the years. I often attend WNBA games at the Connecticut Sun Arena or UCONN games at Gampel Pavilion and still get a little misty-eyed when I watch an exceptional performance or play. The National Anthem always gives me goosebumps, and sometimes, I close my eyes to recall the days when I stood courtside too, sneakers double knotted, a wad of bubble gum in my left cheek, ready to do battle. I’ve learned to appreciate the Diana Taurasi’s and Sue Birds of the league much more entirely because of their commitment to the game, to be the best every single night.

Some people are born with a natural talent and physical attributes for the sport, but there are very few who also possess the inner desire to be the best. While I’ll never be an Olympic basketball player, basketball has taught me so many lessons that I now apply to my life as a professional writer such as:
• Practice your skills.
• Never stop trying.
• Hate losing (or rejection) so much that you’ll do whatever it takes to avoid it.
• Writing, like basketball, is a discipline that can be learned and improved.

It’s taken me years to fully understand how much my life changed that day way back in 1980 when I first held a basketball. I wouldn’t be the person, the woman, I am today without the game of basketball. Love changes over time, but when it’s true, it lasts forever.

About Lucy J. Madison: Lucy J. Madison is a novelist, poet, and screenwriter from Connecticut. She’s the author of two contemporary lesbian romance novels In the Direction of the Sun and Personal Foul as well as a collection of poetry entitled I.V. Poems (Sapphire Books). Personal Foul features a love story between a WNBA player and an official. It was recently named one of the top 10 Lesbian Sports Romance Books by the Lesbian Review. www.lucyjmadison.com Connect with her on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @lucyjmadison.

The post A love that lasts forever first appeared on Lesbian.com.

ESPN (rightfully) caught some flack earlier this week when correspondent Josina Anderson filed an on-air report about the locker room showering habits of the NFL’s first openly gay player, Michael Sam.

When asked by an ESPN anchor how Sam was fitting in with the Rams, rather than discuss the rookie hopeful’s on-field performance (he did have two sacks against Cleveland this past weekend) or pranks to which first-year players are typically subjected, Anderson proceeded to ramble on about how Sam appears to be delaying his post-practice showers in deference to his teammates.

Anderson’s report began innocently enough, quoting one Rams’ player as saying that Sam was “just one of the guys.” (So far, so good; right?). Things devolved quickly, though, as she went on to quote another Ram as saying that Sam appeared to be “respecting our space” and “is waiting to kind of take a shower” so as not to make his teammates feel uncomfortable. Even putting aside the super unclear “kind of take a shower” phrase (is that like “kind of pregnant”?), this was about the time one started to get the ominous feeling that Anderson wasn’t exactly headed toward Peabody Award territory with her story.

The ESPN anchor back in the studio was either as oblivious as Anderson, stunned by what he was hearing or teetering on the edge of his seat waiting for salacious details regarding hunky athletes in the shower, because he allowed Anderson to continue the demonstration of her journalistic prowess, such that it was.

She went on to share that other Rams players “didn’t know that specifically” because they “weren’t tracking that,” “that,” of course, being when and with whom Sam is showering. (C’mon, guys! How are you gonna whittle the roster down to 53 players if you’re not “tracking that”? Football is a game of statistics! Sure, sacks and tackles are important, but hygiene counts, too, yo. By the way, guys, you may want to check with Sam’s boyfriend; he may have some historical data to fill in the gaps for you on that.)

Anderson continued down the slippery slope (after all, that’s whatcha get when ya drop the soap in the shower), revealing that Kendall Langford (one of the quoted Rams’ players) hadn’t been in the shower at the same time as Sam, though there could be “a million reasons for that” — Sam could be doing extra work on the practice field; he could be riding his bike; or he could be doing extra cardio. (It was unclear at this point if  Anderson was using the phrase “extra cardio” as a euphemism of some sort.)

Near the end of the report, Anderson seemed to remember that she was a professional sports correspondent on live television (perhaps a producer broke out a taser?) as she managed to work in some actual football-related information about Sam, again quoting Langford as saying, “If he doesn’t make our team, I’m pretty sure somebody will definitely pick him up on another team … he’s shown some flashes.”

Blessedly, Anderson didn’t speculate about the nature of the “flashes” and whether or not they took place on the playing field or in the shower, but the damage was done and the story soon exploded on social media. Perhaps Rams’ defensive end Chris Long best summed up the collective opinion about the ESPN report when he tweeted, “Dear ESPN, Everyone but you is over it.”

Alas, ESPN, it’s sad but true that in that moment you became to the St. Louis Rams’ locker room shower dynamics what CNN was to the disappearance of Malyasia Airlines Flight 370. Enough already; Michael Sam is a gay man who takes showers and the plane is still missing. We get it!

Unsurprisingly, and to their credit, given the backlash, ESPN apologized for the report issuing a statement on Wednesday which read: “ESPN regrets the manner in which we presented our report. Clearly yesterday we collectively failed to meet the standards we have set in reporting on LGBT-related topics in sports.”

Really, ESPN? A report based on outdated stereotypes and which proliferated anti-gay paranoia failed to meet your standards regarding LGBT-related topics in sports? Way to set that bar high!

As offensive as it may be, all the hoopla about with whom Michael Sam is or isn’t showering did serve one positive purpose. It made me very happy that I’m a lesbian rather than a gay man. Because despite the relatively recent coming out stories in women’s sports, not once have I heard speculation about Britney Griner’s or Abby Wambach’s shower schedules or conjecture regarding the timing thereof. Nor have I heard pre-draft commentators ponder how an openly lesbian athlete would be received by her teammates in the locker room. And I don’t recall Twitter exploding with hate at any point when two women kissed on live television during a celebratory moment.

They say it’s good to be a girl and that seems to be very true when it comes to gays and lesbians in sports, not that lesbian athletes haven’t faced their share of discrimination or persecution. But we women-loving-women seem to have a leg up in these matters as while the general public — and specifically the largely male-dominated sports-loving public —  seems to find the idea of a gay man in the locker room shower distasteful or dangerous in some way, the idea of a shower full of lesbians is every guy’s fantasy. There’s a down side to that, of course — I could dedicate countless columns to the objectification of women and the male lesbian fantasy vs. lesbian reality — but all things being equal I’ll take being idealized and fantasized about over being demonized any day.

Watch the controversial ESPN report below.

The post How Michael Sam makes me grateful to be a lesbian first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Billie Jean King is a legend in the tennis world — a former No. 1 ranked player with 39 Grand Slam titles, she was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987.

King is also renowned for her efforts toward achieving gender equality, famously defeating Bobby Riggs in 1973’s “Battle of the Sexes” and threatening to boycott the U.S. Open unless the tournament offered equal prize money to both men and women.

More recently, President Obama honored King as a member of the U.S. delegation at the 2014 Sochi Olympics and the celebrated athlete and activist continues to lend her talents to efforts aimed at furthering the rights of women and LGBT citizens.

You may think you know a lot about this lesbian icon, but here are 10 tidbits we think may surprise you.

1. King was one of Time magazine’s Persons of the Year in 1975.

2. Her younger brother, Randy Moffitt, was a pitcher for the San Francisco Giants, Houston Astros and Toronto Blue Jays.

3. From 1965 through 1987, Billie Jean was married to Larry King. (No, not that Larry King.)

4. King once played a judge in a 2007 episode of “Law and Order.”

5. King’s life partner, Ilana Kloss, was inducted into the Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 2006.

6. Elton John’s 1975 #1 hit “Philadelphia Freedom” was written as a favor to King who was a member of the Philadelphia Freedoms professional tennis team.

7. King’s father was an engineer for the fire department and her mother was an Avon representative.

8. King is the founder and first president of the Women’s Tennis Association.

9. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009.

10. In 1971, King became the first female athlete to win over $100,000.

Want more fun facts about the women we love? Just click here!

The post Women we love: 10 facts you may not know about Billie Jean King first appeared on Lesbian.com.

Leah Johnson (left) and Miah Register

BY CANDY PARKER
Lesbian.com

In an article posted by Outsports, a blog affiliated with the LGBTQ sports news website SB Nation, two former University of Richmond women’s basketball players, Leah Johnson and Miah Register, allege that they were victims of homophobia and racism while attending the school.

Johnson alleges that after her freshman year when Register was signed to the team, Richmond’s assistant coach Ebony Tanner Moore demanded Johnson end the relationship.

“I don’t know what it is you’re doing,” Johnson quotes Moore as saying, “I don’t know what phase you’re going through, but you need to break up with Miah before she steps foot on this campus.”

Johnson and Register, now engaged, said that their relationship was singled out by the coaching staff.

“I felt like we were really being singled out,” Johnson told Outsports. “There were other girls dating, there were other girls who identified as lesbian or bisexual, and there was such a focus on our personal issues that it affected the productivity of the team.”

Register shared her experiences with the GO! Athletes blog in May 2013, recounting the difficult times she faced after one of the University of Richmond coaches outed her to her mother. Register was forced to move in with Johnson’s family after an assistant coach contacted Register’s mother to tell her that both players would lose their scholarships if they didn’t end the relationship.

“I was absolutely treated differently,” wrote Register. “Not only for being a lesbian, (which, by the way, no one ever asked, it was just assumed, and because I was less feminine than the other girls, they assumed a lot about me) but or being black, and I was judged for being from an urban area. I was ostracized for being the former – being me – and I was abandoned by my family for the same reasons.”

Ultimately, both women transferred to Fairleigh Dickinson University in December 2011. Johnson ended her basketball career in 2012 after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis; Register left the team in 2013 citing emotional issues.

In July 2014 the couple founded the Johnson-Register Alliance, a “platform for women, people with disabilities, people of color, and LGBTQ people,” which will be used to advocate for equality and inclusion.

The University of Richmond conducted its own internal investigation of the allegations and released a statement which read, in part, “The University takes seriously and investigates fully any allegation of discrimination…Due to federal privacy laws, we cannot comment on the specific allegations. University of Richmond is committed to a welcoming and inclusive environment.”

In February 2014, the University of Richmond hosted the first national LGBT student athlete conference.

The post Lesbian college hoopsters allege discrimination first appeared on Lesbian.com.

What did you miss this week in the world of LGBT news? Check out our Lesbian.com round-up and you’ll be ready to gather ’round the rainbow-colored water cooler to talk about four of the biggest, best and most interesting stories for July 13 – July 19.

MLB teams with Athlete Ally

With the annual Major League Baseball (MLB) All-Star game as a backdrop, the league announced the expansion of its association with Athlete Ally, an organization committed to ending homophobia in sports.

According to a statement from the league, MLB, in conjunction with Major League Baseball Advanced Media (MLBAM), has formed a strategic alliance to provide education and training on respect and inclusion in the workplace.

“Athlete Ally will work not only with players, but also with front office personnel on these issues,” MLB Chief Operating Officer Rob Manfred said.

MLB commissioner Bud Selig also named former outfielder Billy Bean, who came out after he retired, as the league’s first ambassador for inclusion.

“We’re not here to change the way people think—We’re here to give them the opportunity to make the best decision,” Bean said. “This is not a desire to find out information about players or encourage them to do something they’re not ready to do. It’s to protect them and let them make their own decisions and be the best players they can be.”

Selig was joined in the announcement by Lutha Burke, sister of late major league outfielder Glenn Burke who came out to his teammates and team owners during his time with the Dodgers, but didn’t come out publicly until two years after leaving the game.

Selig told reporters he wished “our game had someone in place to whom Billy and Glenn could have turned when they played; a friend, listener, a source of support.”

CDC reveals LGBT health survey results

On Tuesday, the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) released data from the National Health Interview Summary, the government’s premier tool for assessing Americans’ health and behaviors. For the first time, the annual survey included a question regarding sexual orientation, allowing researchers to examine how one’s sexual preference may affect health-related behaviors or status.

In the survey, only 2.3 percent of respondents identified as gay, lesbian or bisexual. Another 1.1 percent indicated they were “something else” or “didn’t know the answer” and 96.6 percent identified as straight.

Data indicated higher rates of cigarette smoking and binge drinking among the LGB population as compared to straight people, as well as higher rates of serious psychological stress among bisexuals.

Some LGB health advocates have questioned the CDC survey figures, noting that the 2.3 percent identifying as LGB is slightly lower than other recent surveys, such as a 2012 Gallup Poll in which 3-4 percent of those surveyed identified as gay, lesbian or bisexual. The CDC health data was collected in face-to-face interviews, a setting in which respondents may be less likely to openly reveal their orientation.

David Mariner, executive director of the Washington, D.C., Center for the LGBT Community, told USA Today, “”I think regardless of whether the number is this number or higher, we’re still talking about millions of Americans that are disproportionately affected by a lot of health indicators.”

St. Louis cop sentenced for harassing LGBT couple

Former St. Louis police officer Jeffrey Leveque was sentenced this week after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of harassing an LGBT couple last January.

Leveque, 45, was accused of accosting Meg Hensley and her transgender male partner Kendan Elliott, over the display of a gay pride rainbow flag. Leveque and another man parked outside the couple’s home and yelled threateningly at them as they tried to leave for work.

According to court documents, Leveque was sentenced to one year of supervised probation and could face six months in prison if he violates the terms of his probation.

According to the St. Louis Dispath, Leveque served with the St. Louis Police Department from 2001 to 2004 before resigning while under investigation by Internal Affairs for an unspecified allegation.

Lesbian sheriff candidate in New Mexico dies suddenly

Mylessa Denny, an openly lesbian deputy sheriff in New Mexico who received statewide attention for her bid to become the first elected female sheriff in the state since the 1960s, died suddenly Tuesday. New Mexico State Police believe a “medical episode” contributed to Denny’s death.

Denny, 39, was found on the ground next to her squad car shortly after completing her shift at 4p.m., apparently having collapsed as she was getting into the car.

Sheriff Dennis Cleaver said, “It’s a terrible shock for our department and our community … We’re all in shock.”

In a recent interview, Denny, a U.S. Army veteran said, “I don’t have an agenda. I am openly gay, which is kind of odd for a small town. I believe you should run on how well you can do the job and not the fact that you are male, female or gay.”

The post LGBT week in review: MLB names ambassador for inclusion, CDC releases LGBT health data first appeared on Lesbian.com.

What did you miss this week in the world of LGBT news? Check out our Lesbian.com round-up and you’ll be ready to gather ’round the rainbow-colored water cooler to talk about five of the biggest, best and most interesting stories for July 6 – July 12.

Lesbian college student expelled for marrying partner

On Wednesday, Christian Minard, 22, received written notice from Southwestern Christian University that she was being expelled. The reason? She married her same-sex partner.

“I was informed that you recently married someone of the same sex and saw a few pictures from Facebook,” Brad Davis, the school’s vice president of student life, wrote. “Of course, this is opposing to our view as an International Pentecostal Holiness denominational university as well as the Lifestyle Covenant that all students must agree and sign.”

Minard, who married her partner March 17, is just one semester shy of earning her degree in sports management from the the International Pentecostal Holiness Church affiliated university. She claims that other students violate the cited Lifestyle Covenant regularly without repercussion and believes she was singled out for being a lesbian.

The expulsion leaves the would-be senior with an uncertain future.

“I’m trying to figure out how and where I can graduate,” Minard told CNN, noting that she’ll have to start paying off her loans at the end of next year unless things change. “… It’s going to be hard to get into classes that may be full, because they gave me very little notice before the fall semester starts.”

Italian mayor wants to ban same-sex PDA

If Mayor Gianluca Buonanno of Borgosesia, an Italian municipality, gets his way same-sex couples who kiss in public could be fined up to 500 euros ($680 USD) for the affectionate display.

Per a Huffington Post translation, Mayor Buonanno told Italian newspaper La Repubblica, “Kissing in public between homosexuals? No thanks… It’s a matter of respect. And I am convinced that is morally harmful for children.”

Buonanno is regarded as an eccentric, having previously engaged in behavior uncharacteristic of someone in position, including shredding the European Union flag to use as a handkerchief, waving a sea bass around during a session of Parliament and now announcing his intention to add a photo of anti-gay Russian President Vladimir Putin to his office decor.

According to Pink News, European Parliament member Daniele Viotti said the “new decree is just the latest, pathetic publicity stunt by a narrow-minded man who desperately wants to be in the spotlight.”

Colorado marriage ban struck down

On Wednesday, District Court Judge C. Scott Crabtree ruled that Colorado’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional. Crabtree found that Amendment 43 of the state constitution, approved by voters in 2006 and defining marriage as being between one man and one woman, “bears no rational relationship to any conceivable government interest.”

In his 49-page decision, the judge also stated that, “confining same-sex couples to civil unions is further evidence of discrimination against same-sex couples and does not ameliorate the discriminatory effect of the Marriage Bans.”

Crabtree immediately put his ruling on hold pending an appeal and Colorado Attorney General John Suthers issued a statement on his website indicating his intention to do just that.

“Judge Crabtree provides additional clarity that until the high court rules on the issue of same-sex marriage, Colorado’s current laws remain in place,” said Suthers.

2014 Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame inductees

Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner and Olympic swimmer Diana Nyad were among those honored Friday as inductees into the LGBT Sports Hall of Fame.

The Hall of Fame, a non-profit organization launched in 2013 and headquartered in Chicago, was established to honor individuals and organizations whose achievements and efforts have enhanced the fields of sports and athletics for the gay and lesbian community.

Other notables joining Griner and Nyad in the 2014 class were Billy Bean (MLB), Wade Davis (NFL), Mayor George Moscone (straight ally, deceased), Tom Daley (Olympic diver) and Nike.

The inaugural 2013 class of inductees included tennis legends Billie Jean King and Martina Navratilova, and LPGA Tour champion Patty Sheehan.

Lesbian moms denied family pool pass

An outdated ordinance in Galion, Ohio, which defines a family as a “mother, father and up to three children” came under fire this week when Melody Mohn and her partner, Hela Young, attempted to buy a family pool pass at Galion’s Heise Park.

Mohn, a mother of three, had purchased a family pass for herself and her three children for the past nine years, but when she inquired about adding her partner under the “family” rate, she was denied based on the city’s definition of family.

Members of the city council agree that the ordinance language needs to be changed.

“We certainly don’t want to do anything to prevent children and parents to go swimming in our pool,” Carl Watt, Galion City Council president, told a local news station, adding about the current definition of family, “I mean, 20 years ago, it probably fit the scene, but not today. Not today’s lifestyle.”

Mohn is glad the City Council will be updating the ordinance and has no regrets about pushing for the change.

“We’re not the only same-sex couple, and we’re not the only non-traditional family, either,” said Mohn.

Given that the pool is set to close next month, it is unlikely that the Mohn/Young household will enjoy a family rate at the pool until 2015.

The post LGBT week in review: Lesbian student expelled, Griner inducted, lesbian moms denied first appeared on Lesbian.com.

ESPN’s Body Issue hits newsstands today and U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT) and Seattle Reign star Megan Rapinoe makes history as the first openly gay athlete to appear on the magazine’s pages. While both Olympic ice skater Johnny Weir and soccer phenom Abby Wambach have previously appeared in the Body Issue, neither was officially out at the time.

Rapinoe is joined in the 2014 issue by other elite athletes — including Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps, USMNT soccer player Omar Gonzalez, tennis’ Venus Williams, snowboarder Jamie Anderson and Paralympian Amy Purdy — in tastefully showcasing the beauty of the athletic physique.

Rapinoe spoke with ESPN magazine about coming out. “I think it’s kind of awkward when everyone knows you’re gay but you don’t say it. I had been thinking about coming out for almost a year before I did. I thought about it seriously on the plane ride home from the World Cup, while I was casually talking to my friend Lori Lindsey. She said, ‘Dude, you should just come out.’ She was right. Everyone in my life already knew. If you want to stand up and fight for equal rights but then won’t even stand up for yourself and say ‘I’m gay’ — that just started to feel weird.”

Rapinoe added that it was important to her to be out at the 2012 London Olympics. “I did want to be out for the [London] Olympics. My girlfriend was coming with me and my family was there, and it just felt like the right time. I just wanted it to reach as many people as possible.”

The post Rapinoe unlaces for ESPN Body Issue first appeared on Lesbian.com.

I love sports. I have played most of them. Sports are the thing most often on my TV. My partner loves them, too. In fact, here’s a typical Sunday at my house during the NFL season: We bring an extra TV into the living room and, with an extra 100 feet of cable attached to the box in the front office, we have her NY Giants on one TV and my Detroit Lions on the other (the team with the better record gets the bigger TV, by the way, the first game of season we play each other so look for my break-up article in September).

And, of course, I am watching this year’s World Cup. Sort of — but it’s been hard for me to really get into. I’ve played the game. I know and like the game — to play, just not to watch. I don’t know if it’s the pace or the lack of scoring or that they feign injury like there’s a personal injury attorney watching, but I can’t seem to get into it as much as other sports.

I appreciate how much it means to other countries. The US Women’s World Cup in 1999 was amazing and I’ll never forget how excited I was to see the Rose Bowl filled to capacity with people watching a women’s sporting event. However, this year, I don’t know, World Cup, I’m just not that into you.

But, wait, stop the presses! Luis Suarez, a forward on the Uruguay national team, allegedly bit one of the opposing Italian players on the shoulder during their World Cup match. That is correct, bit. And, it’s the third time in his career he’s been accused of that. He has even been given the nickname “The Cannibal.” This guy knows how to make things exciting. The game was in its 80th scoreless minute until then and Uruguay scored a minute later. That’s exciting. I can see it now, Luis Suarez stars in “Silence of the Keeper.”

The guy he bit (Giorgio Chiellini) kept pulling down his sleeve showing everyone the bite mark trying to get sympathy or, perhaps, a red card. (In case you’re not familiar with the rules, that’s how they punish people in soccer — when you screw up they give you a yellow or red card. I think Hallmark makes them.)

Suarez did not, however, receive a card or penalty from the referee — perhaps, because he didn’t use his hands. Futbol aficionados around the globe are calling for fines or suspension, but I say, not so fast.

Was it really that bad? He didn’t draw much blood. It’s not like he went all Mike Tyson on him and bit off an ear. It was just a little nibble. Just his way of saying “Hi” — you know how those foreigners are always kissing on the cheeks. Or, maybe it was in honor of the start of the final season of “True Blood.”

They’re being too hard on the guy. Suarez bit a moving target. That’s gotta hurt. He gave one for the team. He could have chipped a tooth on that guy’s deltoid. That’s just dedication. The announcers covering the game weren’t too upset. “Oh, dear, dear dear,” they said. “It looks to me, dare I say it, that he’s had a little bite at Chiellini.”

See? They said “little.” Just because Lovebite Luis reacted like a 4 year old doesn’t mean he didn’t have a plan. He was doing it for the ratings. Honestly, did you care about the Uruguay-Italy match before that? No. But now, when Chompers Suarez is on the pitch, Americans will be watching. They might even learn what a pitch is.

In fact, maybe we should try this for other lower rated TV shows. I know I should know more about the political goings on in our country but on Sunday mornings I just can’t “Face the Nation” when “NFL Countdown” is on. If George Stephanopoulos just reached over and took a bite out of George Will when he disagreed with him? I might tune in. Or, how about full-contact presidential debates this fall? Let’s see if Hillary really is a ball buster.

Jennie McNulty was named one of Curve magazine’s Top 10 lesbian comedians. She can be heard weekly as co-host of LA Talk Radio‘s “Cathy Is In: The Cathy DeBuono Show.”

The post ‘The bite’ makes World Cup watchable first appeared on Lesbian.com.

BY CANDY PARKER

I’m not a soccer fan. There, I said it.

Some might find the statement sacrilegious, particularly given the timing, with the U.S. Men’s National Team (USMNT) set to kick off – or tip off or whatever they call it in soccer – against Ghana tonight in their first match of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, but I’ve never managed to go all in on this sport revered by so many.

I may be dating myself a bit in saying this, but back when I was in high school soccer was the sport that girls played in the spring when they weren’t good enough to make the softball team. And when my son was old enough to engage in athletics, we had ice skates on him, a plastic bat in his hand and a small basketball hoop in our living room when he was three, but nary a soccer ball in sight.

My most up close and personal experience with soccer came when I dated a woman for eight years who coached her teenaged daughter’s soccer team. I dutifully suffered through those Saturday morning events, the baseball coach in me frustrated by my ex’s half-time indulgences of her team. I’m sorry, but when you’re losing 6-0 at the half, the players should take a knee and listen to the coach talk strategy, not fret about whose hair ribbons are akimbo. No orange slices for you!

Honestly, I’ve just not had much interest in soccer over the years. Sure, I’ve gotten wrapped up in the nationalistic pride inspired by the Olympics or World Cup a few times. In 1999 when the U.S. Women’s National Team (USWNT) claimed the cup I was as happy as anyone – and not just because a totally ripped and tanned Brandi Chastain tore her shirt off after winning the game with a penalty kick (a terminology I still don’t find apropos given that the kick wasn’t the result of a penalty, but rather the methodology this odd game uses to break a tie after having played but one mere overtime period, which they don’t even call overtime, but, instead extra time).

And when the USMNT squared off against England in their first match of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, I was firmly planted in front of my television, nearly bursting with anticipation and red, white and blue fervor. Yes, I’d bought into the hype hook, line and sinker, briefly duped into caring about men’s soccer by weeks of media propaganda touting the contest as if it were a replaying of the Revolutionary War.

By the time they threw out the first pitch – no wait, “pitch” is what they call the field in soccer, but you get my meaning – I was fired up and ready for my underdog Americans to put an ass-whoopin’ on those boys with notoriously bad teeth. (Calm down all you folks over in the U.K.; sweeping generalizations and the perpetuation of stereotypes are permitted for comedic effect.)

What I got that day instead was 90-plus minutes of the most disappointing and anticlimactic sporting event since Mike Tyson knocked out Peter “Hurricane” McNeeley in less than 90 seconds. What you have probably forgotten by now (but I remember vividly), is that the game ended in a 1-1 draw, a fancy word for tie. That is, no one won and no one lost – kind of like in T-ball.

So here I am, an avid sports fan and proud American, but I am torn about how much to invest in the USMNT’s exploits in Brazil. I’m having a hard time emotionally committing to a sport which allows what are essentially their playoff games to end in a tie. (Spare me your detailed explanation of the round-robin tournament format and the associated point system. I’m a girl, but I do “get” it. I just don’t like it. Playoff games — which, in effect, each contest leading up to the championship is, shouldn’t end in ties. Man up and play the thing out, boys!)

This is a huge tournament, not U-5 soccer where there are no winners and no losers. People wait four years for this thing to come around, paint themselves in their home country’s colors, take a month off from work to attend and have been known to beat each other to a pulp over the outcome. This is supposed to be the Super Bowl, World Series, Stanley Cup and NBA Championship all rolled into one (pun most definitely intended).

Imagine going through the entire NFL season and heading into the playoffs. As luck would have it, your favorite team is matched up against your most loathed conference rival. You eat, sleep and dream football all week. You trash talk. You RSVP “No” to your own child’s wedding because you don’t want to miss the game. FOX runs slickly produced commercials ballyhooing the contest and you get a little more charged up each time you see one. You have your snacks lined up, your friends gathered around the 70” HD set to rally ‘round the team and your sports-averse partner has agreed to leave the house so that you may bask in glory that is hardcore, hard-fought and hard-won competition.

The teams scuffle through the first half to a 0-0 score. “Great defensive battle!” you tell yourself as you replenish the beer cooler and refill the dip bowls at half-time, “This is what championship football is all about!”

Defense continues strong as each team manages only a field goal in the second half. Time is running out on a 3-3 score. Your team is driving down the field, almost within your kicker’s striking distance when you notice that the game clock has expired. But wait, the ref is winding his arm indicating that he’s putting more time on the clock, albeit a mystery amount of time to which only he is privy. You watch a few more plays, your team is getting closer and closer to the end zone and then…

*Shrill whistle sound*

Game over. It’s a 3-3 tie and there is no winner. Thanks for watching; everyone can go wash off their face paint now.

How disappointed are you in that moment? Exactly. And the world dares call this soccer thing a sport? Hrumph!

And adding to my World Cup apathy is the fact that the USMNT coach, Jurgen Klinsmann, has already conceded defeat. Yep, you read that right. The man charged with preparing our national team for battle on the sport’s grandest stage has stated multiple times in recent weeks that his team doesn’t stand a chance of winning. Real coaches in real sports don’t do that! Sure, the USMNT didn’t get the best tournament draw – I believe their bracket has been deemed the “Group of Death” by those in the know – but a coach should never admit pre-game defeat.

Oh, and don’t even get me started on how these so-called world class athletes tumble to the ground writing in pain if someone so much as looks at them cross-eyed.

So what’s an ardent sports fan and patriotic American to do when her national team in a sport in which she has little to no interest is about to compete on the world’s largest stage, led by a coach who says they can’t win?

I think this time around, I’ll set the bar on my own emotional involvement a great bit lower than I did in 2010. And if the USA and Ghana play to a draw tonight, I won’t let it faze me one bit. Heck, if the guys who make the rules don’t care who wins, why should I?

The post My FIFA World Cup does not runneth over first appeared on Lesbian.com.