ABOVE: Tom Daley, screenshot via YouTube.
In his speech accepting the 2021 Attitude Magazine Foundation’s Virgin Atlantic Attitude Sport Award, 27-year-old British Olympic Gold Medalist and champion diver Tom Daley took aim at 10 countries that have death penalties for people who are LGBTQ.
Daley told the audience at the Virgin Atlantic Attitude Awards held at The Roundhouse Theatre in Central London Oct. 7 that the Olympic Games should ban those nations.
“These past Olympic Games there were more out LGBT athletes than at any of the previous Olympics combined, which is a great step forward,” Daley said. “Yet there are still 10 countries that punish being gay with death that were still allowed to compete at the Olympic Games.”
Reflecting on the fact that the Tokyo Olympics had for the first time ever more LGBTQ+ athletes competing, Daly said, “It’s all well and good speaking about those things but I think it’s really important to try and create change rather than just highlighting and shining a light on those things.”
The Olympian champion diver went on to tell those in the audience at the Jaguar Motorcars co-sponsored event he was going to make it his mission to effect change.
“I want to make it my mission before the Paris Olympics in 2024 to make it so that the countries that criminalize and make it punishable by death for LGBT people are not allowed to compete at the Olympic Games,” Daley said.
He then pointed out that those same countries shouldn’t be able to host Olympic games either- then he called out the upcoming World Cup in Qatar;
“The World Cup coming up in Qatar has extreme rules against LGBT people and women and I think it should not be allowed for a sporting event to host in a country that criminalizes against basic human rights,” he said.
Olympic champion @TomDaley1994 confirms he’ll campaign for countries that carry the death penalty for being gay to be barred from all future Games as he accepts the Attitude Sport Award, supported by @jaguaruk.#AttitudeAwards pic.twitter.com/QtSi5UH2gV
— Attitude Magazine (@AttitudeMag) October 7, 2021
Olympic champions @TomDaley1994 and @mattydiver reflect on how LGBTQ representation in sport can help effect real change at the #AttitudeAwards. pic.twitter.com/NeC5qfDzKh
— Attitude Magazine (@AttitudeMag) October 7, 2021
