Nineteen-year-old British diver Tom Daley, who won a Bronze at the London Games and became both heartthrob and gay icon, announced in a Youtube video this morning that he's in a relationship with another man.
He very pointedly did not label himself as gay, only that he's now dating a dude.
I've been dating girls and I've never really had a serious relationship to talk about and now I feel ready to talk about my relationships. Come spring this year my life changed massively when I met someone and it made me feel so happy, so safe, and everything just feels great. And, well, that someone is a guy. And it did take me by surprise a little bit. It was always in the back of my head that something like that could happen but it wasn't until spring this year that something just clicked. It felt right. Like I said, my whole world just changed there and then. Of course I still fancy girls but, I mean, right now I'm dating a guy and I couldn't be happier. It feels safe and it really does feel right.
Daley's video is a reaction to a September interview with the Daily Mirror in which he claims he was misquoted—or at least the headline twisted to read "I'm not gay."