Welsh rugby star Gareth Thomas has revealed that he is HIV positive.
Thomas, who came out as gay in 2009, is thought to be the first UK sportsman to go public about living with the virus, and has revealed that he was driven to suicidal thoughts as a result of his diagnosis.
He told the Sunday Mirror: “I’ve been living with this secret for years. I’ve felt shame and keeping such a big secret has taken its toll.
“I was in a dark place, feeling suicidal. I thought about driving off a cliff. To me, wanting to die was just a natural thought and felt like the easier way out, but you have to confront things.” Read more via Guardian
— Gareth Thomas (@gareththomas14) September 14, 2019
Journalist 'told rugby player's parents of HIV'
Former rugby player Gareth Thomas has said a journalist spoke to his parents about his HIV status before they had discussed it. He said he would "absolutely not" have made his diagnosis public if a tabloid had not made threats to publish it. The ex-Wales captain broke the news on Saturday, the day before finishing an Ironman triathlon.
Thomas was speaking a day after cricketer Ben Stokes criticised the Sun for running a story about his family.
The former British & Irish Lions captain said he had been living in fear of the press publishing details of his HIV status. And he criticised the fact a reporter approached his parents before the family had discussed it properly.
"Imagine what position that puts me in. I can never, ever, ever have that moment back with my mother and father of sitting down and telling them something so personal to me," he told BBC Breakfast. “They took that right away from me. I'm lucky that I have parents who love me and will support me through anything, but I deserved to have that moment with them."
'Media ethics'
Damian Collins MP, chairman of the parliamentary Digital, Culture, Media and and Sport committee, told BBC Wales: "I don't believe there is any public interest in putting people under that sort of pressure.
"Putting them in that sort of situation, I think that is a private matter... It should be entirely a decision for [Thomas] to take." Read more via BBC
Crowds cheer on Gareth Thomas as he takes part in Ironman hours after revealing he is HIV positive
Supporters, who have lined the streets of the seaside town, cheered him on as he started out on one of the world's toughest races. There were shouts of "Come on Alfie" and "Go Gareth" as he finished the two-mile swim section of the course in under an hour and a half, before he got on the bike for the 112-mile cycle.
Thomas revealed on Saturday that he kept the diagnosis a secret for years since it was revealed to him during a routine health check. He had no idea the diagnosis was coming and described it as "being hit by a 300-mile-an-hour train without expecting it". Just hours after the bombshell revelation, he was taking part in the gruelling competition. See pictures and read more via Wales Online