Former Scotland cricket captain Abbi Aitken-Drummond has always been quite a private person, which helped her come to terms with her sexuality as a youngster, but now she wants to speak out and inspire the next generation.
Category: Sport
Sammy Walker: “You can’t control people’s opinions, only prove them wrong.”
Sammy Walker was on track to become a professional footballer in Watford's academy, but not believing it possible to be trans and play football, she quit. It took eight years, but after her transition she finally returned to the sport, which gave her a new lease of life.
Kristen Fraser: “I’m not taking a step back now, I either finish with a world title or I don’t finish.”
Kristen Fraser is a pioneer in boxing as she is Scotland's first ever professional woman. From the sport being illegal for women, to Commonwealth Games disappointment, turning pro and targeting a world title, the Aberdeen fighter's story has had it's fair share of ups and down.
LEAP Sports launch Pride Active Conversations with Philippa York as first guest
Cycling legend Philippa York will be the first guest in a new series of interviews organised by LEAP Sports Scotland to raise awareness of LGBTIQ+ issues in sport. The Pride Active Conversations will run over the coming weeks with guests already confirmed from the worlds of cycling, football and golf serving as an online alternative …
Continue reading LEAP Sports launch Pride Active Conversations with Philippa York as first guest
Ian Pearson: “Sport saved my life. I feel like I’ve been trying to give back ever since.”
As a tennis coach in Newcastle and chair of the United With Pride LGBT+ supporters' group, Ian Pearson has a range of experiences in sport. It was a saving grace for him in his younger years when struggling with his mental health, but he has turned that battle into a passion to strive to make sure things are better for future generations.
Nick Heath: “On the whole, people are ready to say it’s whether you’re getting them a beer that they’re worried about, not their sexuality, and I’m happy with that.”
Nick Heath is an established voice in rugby broadcasting, having worked on World Cups, Six Nations and Premiership matches. But in lockdown, he has gone viral through his Life Commentaries and pub quizzes as well as putting plans together to continue his Cue Commentator podcast.
Zach Sullivan: “I just needed someone to tell me there was nothing wrong with it.”
In January, professional ice hockey player Zach Sullivan made headlined when he became the first UK player to come out. Since then his life has been a whirlwind of media interest off the ice, which has been quite the adjustment for someone who used to hate doing interviews. Here he talks about coming out in the public eye, what he hoped to achieve by going public and how struggling with his sexuality affected him for over a decade.
Charles Wollin: “We’re all in this together, and sometimes we forget that.”
Bay Area broadcaster Charles Wollin fills a multitude of roles on and off the soccer pitch, which has fuelled his passion for inclusion across the entire LGBT+ spectrum, and has seen first hand how high-profile coming outs can have an impact.
Laura Montgomery: “There were probably other people at the time that said it was arrogance. I think Cas and I genuinely believed we could do things better.”
Laura Montgomery is one of the co-founders of Glasgow City, the dominant side of women's football in Scotland. She rose from not being allowed to play as a child, to forming her own club, playing for and captaining them, and watching on as the club went from strength to strength domestically and in Europe.
Elite Ice Hockey League Pride Weekend: “It’s such an all-inclusive atmosphere, it’s competitive, it’s exciting.”
This weekend the Elite Ice Hockey League are holding their first ever Pride Weekend, with teams up and down the country taking to the ice in rainbow colours and specially designed pucks being used in matches. All 10 of the sides in the division are hosting at least one Pride match, with the first taking …
