STUDY: Sports Players Say USA #1 in Homophobia

"Most homophobic" is not exactly something anyone would want to boast about, but a groundbreaking new study of sports players around the world has found the United States to be the English-speaking country with that dubious title.

And as the Washington Blade reported, you might be surprised where it's worst: not in the locker room. Spectator stands and school physical education classes were ranked as the two places with the most rampant homophobia.

"Out on the Fields" bills itself as the first international study focusing on homophobia in sports. The online survey featured participants from various sports backgrounds, with about 25 percent of participants identifying as heterosexual.

Researchers decided to focus only on lesbian, gay, and bisexual issues and excluded examining trans issues in sports.

The study found that 83 percent of participants believe an openly gay person would not be safe as a spectator at a sporting event. Researchers said that 78 percent of those polled believe youth sports, for those under age 22, are not safe spaces for LGB people.

Susan Rankin, a senior research associate at Pennsylvania State University who sat on the study's expert review panel, believes LGB children are most susceptible to encountering issues during physical education classes. "You're changing, you're in the locker room," Rankin told the Blade. "You're a little more vulnerable there than you would be in English class."

Another area of concern is the use of homophobic language in sports, by both young and old. Those who had experienced homophobia reported 89 percent of gay men and 82 percent of lesbians had heard homophobic slurs.

Rankin said that's because of repeated use over generations, something that is going to take time to deconstruct. "It's an area where masculinity and femininity are highlighted," she said. "It's the last dash for us to move through."

The study found that 50 percent of gay men and 53 percent of lesbians reported they were personally targeted for their sexual orientation in sports.

That difference, said Rankin, is largely due to the fact that gay men in sports are not as out as lesbians. Gay men are less likely to come out to their team or coach while they are on a sports team, whereas lesbians are more likely to be out and publicly identify themselves as queer.

The study indicated that 83 percent of gay men remain in the closet to all or some of their team while only 63 percent of lesbians report being in the closet to some or all of their team.

American gay men were also more likely to fear discrimination from their coaches and officials than gay men in any other country surveyed.

Gay men's fear of coming out versus lesbians being more open also means lesbians are more likely to be targeted because they're more visible.

That's something Rankin said she knows from personal experience. "The label of lesbianism in sports is one that women would go to great lengths generations ago to not come across as gay so they wouldn't get dropped," she told the Blade.

Researchers concluded that although there has been great progress for LGBT causes in the United States overall, there is still more work to be done on the field.

Download a copy of the full study results here.