Olympian Gus Kenworthy has reflected on his coming out story and the rumors linking him to Miley Cyrus.
The freestyle skier admitted to sending 'flirty texts' to Cyrus, before thinking 'I don't want to do this anymore' and coming out in 2015 on an ESPN The Magazine cover.
In a new interview, with The New Yorker, Kenworthy spoke about how he resonated with the characters in steamy TV show Heated Rivalry in terms of being a top level athlete keeping his sexuality a secret.
Before coming out, the British American 34-year-old was linked to figure skater Gracie Gold and to the pop singer Miley Cyrus.
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Cyrus rumors went into overdrive after he won the silver medal in men's slopestyle at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi and was asked about his ‘dream date’ as the event was near Valentines Day.
Explaining the situation, he said: “I remember just feeling really tormented: Do I make a joke in quotes and say, like, Jake Gyllenhaal?
"But I kind of panicked and said Miley Cyrus. Miley tweeted at me and followed me. It was surreal for a number of reasons, but I was also digging myself this deeper and deeper hole.”
He went on to say that there was some ‘flirty texting’ between the two of them, but it left him questioning whether he wanted to continue to lie about his sexuality.
During the interview, Kenworthy was also asked his opinion about the hit TV show, Heated Rivalry, based on Rachel Reid's Game Changers series of books.
The show follows the story of Shane Hollander, a conflicted men's professional hockey player from Canada, and his long term rival and notorious 'ladies man', Russian athlete Ilya Rozanov, who are having a love affair behind the scenes.
Initially Kenworthy said he didn’t understand the big deal, thinking it was fun but rather a bit ‘smutty’. He eventually came around and found himself resonating with the themes and internal struggles surrounding sexuality in the story.
He explained: “I don’t think I’ve ever seen myself reflected onscreen like that, in such a substantial way. The parallels are kind of insane.
“I also had a secret relationship, with these clandestine meetings and hookups. And Miley Cyrus was my own Rose, this famous person that I was suddenly linked to, and as much as I kind of wanted it - because that’s the person you would want to be with if you’re straight, someone successful and beautiful and talented - it’s not the same as when you’re with a guy.
“And then the Scott Hunter character - I really related to him. He wanted to be out, but really, just truly felt like he couldn’t be, because of his circumstances.”
Topics: News, US News, Sex and Relationships, LGBTQ
Gerrard Kaonga