A former Australian pro basketball star just surprised the sports world by coming out as gay.
Andrew Ogilvy, a retired center with the National Basketball League, came out during a frank conversation with the only other out gay player in the Aussie equivalent to the NBA.
“There’s now a place for us to have this conversation, to be able to talk as openly as this,” Oglivy said when asked about his decision to come out in a chat with Isaac Humphries in the lead up to the NBL’s Pride Round, an annual event celebrating the LGBTQ+ community.
“If people want to talk to someone, people want to be able to ask opinions, ask questions, it gives them someone else to reach to,” Ogilvy said.
The 37-year-old athlete, who retired in 2022, revealed that he has been married to his longtime partner for 18 months after meeting him while he was playing for the Sydney Kings more than a decade ago. Ogilvy, known as “AJ,” admitted he tried to “present as straight and not show this side of my personality” during his time playing pro ball.
“I probably didn’t live my life as authentically as [I] probably could have during my time, especially in the NBL,” Ogilvy said, but admitted that some players likely knew the truth because he “wasn’t super discreet about it."
“Part of it was a view that it was just my business, but the world shifted between our generations, when marriage equality vote rolled around [in 2017], I was very vocal around that while still not publicly saying, ‘I’m a gay man.’”
Ogilvy said that when he was growing up he didn’t see any “positive portrayals of gay relationships in basketball or in the media as a whole,” but credited Humphries coming out publicly as giving him the courage he needed to make an announcement of his own.
“[It was] hugely beneficial to have someone of your stature and attitude be able to step forward and say this is who you are,” he said.
Ogilvy may credit Humphries for inspiring him, but fans quickly pointed to Heated Rivalry’s popularity as helping queer athletes feel comfortable coming out.
“heated rivalry opened the doors for athletes to feel safe coming out this is genuinely so beautiful representation is truly so important,” a fan posted on X.
Whether or not the show about two closeted hockey players who find love while hiding their identities impacted Ogilvy, hockey player Jesse Kortuem credited Heated Rivalry when he came out last week.
"I know many closeted and gay men in the hockey world are being hit hard by Heated Rivalry's success," Kortuem told Out. "Never in my life did I think something so positive and loving could come from such a masculine sport.”
Humphries commended Ogilvy for his announcement and how it could help increase queer visibility. “It’s not about forcing or anything, it’s just a bit of visibility for a community,” he said. “Everybody is welcome. Basketball is such a universal space and universal game, why wouldn’t we also celebrate this community?”
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Adelaide United FC shares a post titled 'Adelaide United Responds to Social Media Claims' to its official website on January 13, 2025.
Conor McDermott-Mostowy@conor.mm/Instagram