“I am gay.” In those words, 27-year-old Jon Lee-Olsen wrote Danish history in 'Go' tonight LIVE 'on Thursday night. He is now the first professional male ice hockey player in Denmark to be openly gay - and the only third in the world.

“There is a risk that some people will yell at me when I play matches. You have to be ready for that and it requires maturity. But I feel that I am ready to show that you can easily be gay and play ice hockey,” he says.

However, it is a decision that has been years away for the Rungsted Seier Capital goalkeeper. “It was very difficult to jump out to my parents, but it was easier than in the hockey environment,” says Jon Lee-Olsen, who told friends and family seven years ago that he is gay.

"It took longer than I expected, but now I'm ready to stand up for myself and others," he said.

In Danish sports, openly gay men are strongly under-represented, and no professional handball, football, badminton players or cyclists have yet emerged. This has also been the case in the Ice Hockey Metal League so far, which is why Jon Lee-Olsen has been nervous about both teammates and the reaction of the crowd.

“The hockey environment can be tough to be in, and "gay" and "gay ass" can be shouted for the matches. That is why I have asked myself if people are ready for it in the environment and whether they can accept me as I am,” says Jon Lee-Olsen.

With his decision, he hopes to pave the way for other ice hockey players who have not yet had the courage to come out of the closet.

Kenneth Reinicke, associate professor of human research at Roskilde University, regards ice hockey as one of the sports in which macho culture is most pronounced. That's why Jon Lee-Olsen's decision to come as a surprise to him comes. “It's a whole sensation. It's a great story and it's totally brave,” he says. Read more via TV2

Pro hockey player comes out as gay on live TV

Jon Lee-Olsen has become the first professional hockey player to come out as gay in Denmark, and he did so in spectacular fashion on live television. The hockey player is the first tow come out as gay in Denmar. He joins Canada’s Brendan Burke and Sweden’s Lars Peter Karlsson making him the third out male hockey plater at a professional level in worldwide. Twenty-four years ago, Karlsson was murdered in a suspected homophobic attack at the age of 29 in 1995.

Jon Lee-Olsen bravely said that he is ready for the backlash he will inevitably face as an out LGBT+ sports person. “There’s a risk that some people might shout and heckle me while I’m playing matches,” he said. “It’s something I have to be ready for and be mature about. But I feel that I’m ready to show that you can be gay and play ice hockey. It took longer than I expected, but now I’m ready to stand up for myself and others.” Read more via GCN