CHANGE-MAKERS
While individuals may encounter difficulties in life simply because of their gender, skin colour, religion or country of origin, the Games, with the diversity of the athletes who take part, champion the right to be different. Participating at the Games may not change the world, but it can certainly help make a difference.
Eric Radford (2018-02-16) by A Plus CreativeThe Olympic Museum
ERIC RADFORD (CAN FIGURE SKATING) 1985-
Avenging the past
From a mining village in northwest Ontario, Eric Radford suffered bullying and harassment during his childhood. The reason: he was the only boy who preferred figure skating to ice hockey!
He admits to not having had many friends, not understanding why his love of the sport should elicit such hatred.
As an adolescent, he left his village to pursue a career in his sport.
The next step in his career was his first appearance at the Olympics, in 2014 in Sochi, where he won a silver medal in the new team event. At the end of the year, he decided to speak publicly for the first time about his homosexuality.
He realised that by speaking out he could make a difference.
In 2018, in PyeongChang, he entered the history books by becoming the first openly gay medal-winner in the team event.
The truth behind Eric Radford's golden journey by Olympic ChannelThe Olympic Museum
The truth behind Eric Radford's golden journey
Eric Radford (2018-02-16) by Getty Images / Clive MASONThe Olympic Museum
PyeongChang 2018
Eric Radford (2019-01-10) by A Plus CreativeThe Olympic Museum
"No other gay figure skater had to date come out at the height of their career. I realised that the only way to achieve normality was to speak out in public"
Take a look at other inspiring Change-Maker portraits in our webdoc.
change-makers.blog-tom.com
Useful information about The Olympic Museum in Lausanne www.olympic.org/museum
