Welsh Olympian and Commonwealth Games Silver Medalist Daniel Jervis has come out as gay at the age of 26, explaining “It took 24 years to be who I was, but now I’m happy.”
Jervis who has just finished competing at the World Championships in Budapest opened up about his sexuality for the first time publicly during an interview with BBC’s The LGBT Sport Podcast.
Speaking with host Jack Murley, Jervis explained that his sexuality has always been something in the back of his mind, bugging him.
“I thought I was bisexual and had girlfriends that I loved – but it came to about three years ago where I knew I had to deal with this,” he said.
“I said to her: ‘I think I’m gay,’”
“I couldn’t even say: ‘I’m gay.’ It was still… I couldn’t say it. I was basically punching the words out,” Jervis told Murley.
“She was quite shocked but great, and it was exactly the reaction I wanted. I’ve had all good reactions, and the way I’ve described it is I’m not going to change as a person.”
Despite feeling the pressure of competing in the Olympics in Tokyo, Jervis – a devout Christian, says coming out was a kind of pressure he had never felt before, explaining that he found it extremely difficult to accept his feelings, however, at the age of 24, Jervis felt he needed to tell those closest to him before eventually coming out publically.
“I love God, and out of all the things in my life, my faith is what I’m most proud of,” he explains. “And there is this thing where people say you can’t be Christian and gay together, and I was sitting there knowing you can be because I am!”
Jervis, says he was inspired to come out publicly by both Jake Daniels, the Blackpool FC player who came out as gay, and swimmer Michael Gunning, who Jervis says has been a “fantastic help.”
Jervis hopes that he can help others with his story and hopes to be a role model for LGBTQ+ youth. “When I was younger in swimming, I wasn’t aware of any out swimmers so didn’t have anyone I could look to who was like me. I want to be that person for someone.”
