Olympics winner: ‘Being gay cost me sponsorships’

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Matthew Mitcham, the Australian diver who won the ten-metre platform gold medal at the Beijing Olympics, has said he believes he lost sponsorship deals due to being openly gay.

According to the Daily Telegraph, he said: “I haven’t experienced any homophobia in sport but I’m hoping I’m not experiencing any in the corporate world because I haven’t had any companies rushing to sponsor me,” he said.

“It took me a very long time to secure any form of sponsorship after the Olympics, and that’s still my only sponsorship.”

Mitcham, 20, beat 14-year-old Brit Tom Daley to make history by receiving the highest mark for an individual dive at an Olympic Games.

He came out in a newspaper interview shortly before the Games began and has since become something of a gay role model.

When asked how he felt on the responsibility, he said: “As soon as anybody looks up to you, you automatically become a role model whether you choose to be or not, and you can either embrace it or not.

“I choose to embrace it and try to be the best role model I can be.”

Mitcham was previously a trampolining champion before being spotted by a coach at a pool who thought he had potential to succeed at diving.

He battled depression and anxiety, taking a year-long break before returning to the sport to claim gold.

In February, he was named as one of three new ambassadors for the Australian government’s men’s health policy.

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