First out gay NCAA wrestler gets hard jail time for child porn

The first out college wrestler in NCAA history was sentenced last week to over seven years in jail for the distribution of child pornography.

Alec Donovan, 26, of Brick Township, New Jersey, was sentenced in Trenton federal court on March 28 to 87 months in a federal penitentiary followed by 30 years of supervised release, the U.S. attorney’s office said in a press release. U.S. District Judge Zahid N. Quraishi handed down the sentence after Donovan entered a guilty plea in June of last year.

Prosecutors had alleged that Donovan used an internet-based app to exchange images and videos depicting the abuse of children. He was also charged with using a web-based messaging app to solicit illegal imagery from children as well as sending nude selfies and imagery to children.

Prior to his arrest, Donovan had been a youth wrestling coach and trainer. On his LinkedIn profile, Donovan listed his current occupation as a coach at the Shorething Wrestling Club in Lakewood.

Donovan made headlines as a young high school wrestler in New Jersey. He was the state high school wrestling champion in 2015, with a 39-1 record in his senior year. He was also ranked among the top 25 wrestlers in the country for his weight class.

He was profiled in OutSports where he revealed a female friend encouraged him to come out after his freshman year in high school.

“I was so happy she made me do that,” Donovan told OutSports in 2015. “Because now I don't think about it. I'm moving forward.”

Donovan then gained fame as the first known out gay wrestler in NCAA history, but he later transferred to Centenary University in Hackettstown after experiencing homophobia and losing his scholarship following a concussion. Donovan graduated with a bachelor’s degree in history.