This year’s Time 100 is out, featuring the magazine’s selections for 100 influential people this year.
While there is one LGBTQ athlete included, her orientation is secondary for her inclusion, so much so that The Advocate didn’t initially know to include her in their list of out honorees (an oversight which, I have no doubt, they’ll fix).
Jenni Hermoso was best-known for two main things in 2023, in addition to talking publicly about being gay. The first was being a key part of the Spanish team that won the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Hermoso finished second in the voting for player of the tournament. It was a glorious month for the Spaniard.
The second memorable moment for Hermoso, and why she is part of the Time 100, was an unwanted kiss on the lips from Luis Rubiales, then the president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation. Hermoso was not pleased, pushing to take “measures to protect the players against actions we believe are unacceptable.”
Get off the sidelines and into the game
Hermoso’s refusal to back down drew support from across women’s soccer. Ultimately it led to the resignation of Rubiales and the removal of the head coach of the team.
Time’s entry for Jenni Hermoso was penned by Mana Shim, another out athlete who led a charge in American soccer against sexual abuse and other inappropriate behaviors targeting female players.
“My decision to come forward helped spur a new era in women’s soccer in the U.S.—but globally, soccer is still controlled by men,” Shim wrote for Time. “Hermoso courageously told her truth, over and over again, despite efforts to silence her.”
To Time’s credit, at least 10 of the people named to the Time 100 are LGBTQ.
Still, it seems that this moment for LGBTQ athletes could have garnered more attention for them and the cause of inclusion in sports.
Of course, it’s possible that LGBTQ athletes headed to this summer’s Paris Olympic Games — like American sprinter Sha’Carri Richardson or British diver Tom Daley — were not included in hopes they’d earn a spot in 2025.
Yet with all the current conversation about the inclusion of trans athletes in sports, it’s surprising no one in or around that worldwide conversation was included.
We look forward to more out gay, lesbian, bi and trans athletes and coaches earning a spot on next year’s Time 100.
