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Olympic freeskier Gus Kenworthy announces he is gay

Gus Kenworthy, Olympic freeskier and friend to stray Sochi dogs, made a significant announcement on Thursday:

An athlete coming out as gay no longer necessarily qualifies as news on its own; in the post-Michael Sam era, athletes have wider support networks and more understanding audiences. But in the highly image-conscious world of action sports, Kenworthy's decision ranks as, yes, brave and worthy of respect.

In a lengthy ESPN article on his background, Kenworthy details the reasons behind his decision. A silver medalist in Sochi, Kenworthy returned home to Telluride, Colo., to a throng of adoring fans. Consider this passage:

Now, back home in Telluride, mountains looming as the backdrop, Kenworthy addresses his fans. "This is incredibly overwhelming," he says, words shaky, face red from the cold. "This whole crowd here is my family."

As his short speech comes to a close to raucous applause, Kenworthy continues through the crowd, flashing uneasy grins for the camera-holding masses, wishing he could hide from view. They see a hometown hero, Kenworthy sees a liar and a coward. If they knew he was gay, would these kids idolize him as much? Would his sponsors continue to pay him? Would his friends stop using "gay" as a descriptor for all things that suck?

The answer, Kenworthy is convinced, is no. They'd all turn away, and all he'd be left with is a heavy piece of silver. He is so convinced of this that, in his darkest moments, one of America's newest and most beloved Olympians has contemplated taking his own life.

That's powerful stuff, and that's the reason why athletes coming out is still news: to give hope and strength to others who still suffer by keeping truth under wraps. One of Kenworthy's wishes is so simple it's laughable: that the TV cameras would be able to focus on his significant other in the crowd, just as they do for other athletes.

Kenworthy is a relatively rare example of someone at the top of his sport coming out; other gay athletes have been at the fringes of major sports, or in the minor leagues. Had Kenworthy come out even a few years ago, he likely would have faced a far different landscape than he does today. Full acceptance of gay athletes isn't anywhere near, and perhaps not even possible, but this is as good as it's ever been.

The ESPN article closes with a powerful statement of purpose from Kenworthy. "I want to be the guy who comes out," he says, "wins [stuff], and is like, I'm taking names."

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Jay Busbee is a writer for Yahoo Sports. Contact him at jay.busbee@yahoo.com or find him on Twitter.

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