Gay wrestler Darren Young was a ‘nervous wreck’ after coming out
Gay wrestler Darren Young, real name Fred Rosser, has spoken about his coming out experience, and how nervous the aftermath made him.
The WWE star came out in 2013 after a TMZ photographer asked if a gay wrestler could be successful – but the chance encounter left Young feeling nervous about his future.
Talking to GSN, the 35-year-old said that the moments following changed everything for him.
“I did not think about it before doing it and afterwards I was a nervous wreck. I did the interview and I was confident and I walked away then I was like, “What the hell did I just do?” “Am I going to lose family? Friends? My job?”
“It was the fear of the unknown. But I was assured by WWE that everything would be okay and the support of my family was tremendous.”
The sports star has since found that coming out has been great, and now he is a role model – or a gay superhero – to thousands of young LGBT fans.
He said: “My job as a WWE superstar is to beat people up in the rung but I also have a job to send positive vibes and I do that by going to different schools and talking about bullying. It is a serious epidemic. It’s my job to be that gay superhero and put an end to all that.
“All my fans, all my friends have been so supportive of me and I couldn’t ask for anything better. My job now is to return the favour to those that are unsure about themselves and to just know that they’ve got me as a friend on social media,” he added.
