‘Why didn’t he do it years ago?’

Reckon Thorpie's coming out isn't news? Couldn't be more wrong. Source: AP

"I knew it all along."

"Of course he's gay"

"Why didn't he just admit it years ago?"

This sums up most of the reaction to the news that Ian Thorpe is finally comfortable enough to be open about his sexuality.

Exactly. Why didn't he just come out when we all "knew" the truth years ago?

Ian Thorpe in Paris, 2003. Source: Supplied

The answer, or at least some of it, lies in the comments of an AFL commentator who thinks it's OK to use the phrase "big poofter" on national television.

Channel 7's Brian Taylor used the slur as he watched Geelong Cats superstar Harry Taylor make a 'royal wave' as he was being chaired around the field by his teammates.

Get it? He waved like a queen. What a poof.

The comment was stupid and Brian Taylor knows it. At half time he made a classic non-apology.

"In the pre-game show I said something that I regret, and I sincerely apologise in regard to Harry Taylor and anyone — and particularly Harry and any of his friends — that were offended by my remark," he said.

"I apologise for that and I sincerely regret any harm that I have caused. So, sorry for that."

It's half an apology. I'm not sorry I said it, I'm just sorry that people heard me.

It's a start, but Taylor should be sorry that he ever said the words in the first place.

AFL Legend Brian Taylor has rightly found himself in hot water. Source: Supplied

And those words are actually more revealing than he realises.

Broadcasters have a built-in warning system. It's the thing that stops a blokey footy commentator who normally might use swear words the way an artist uses a paintbrush from dropping an F-bomb on live TV.

But Taylor's warning system didn't even come close to going off when he used a vile homophobic slur on live TV.

Channel 7, to its credit, acted swiftly. Taylor was forced to make his half-hearted apology and he'll be counselled.

Some will no doubt want him sacked, but there are no winners with that outcome. He should be made to apologise properly and to understand the impact of his words.

And that's where we come back to Thorpie.

Ian Thorpe was a child when he came to international prominence.

Athens was Thorpe's second Olympics ... And he was only 21. Source: Getty Images

He may not have even had an inkling of his true sexuality when he denied it publicly.

And then he did deny it. So What next? You're stuck denying and denying, digging a bigger hole for yourself. Feeling more and more trapped, with no one on earth you can talk to.

It must have been a terrible place to be, and may go a long way to explaining the personal issues that have dogged Ian since he left the pool.

It's been suggested that Thorpie lied to us when he denied being gay for all those years.

No, he didn't.

He was on his own, deeply personal journey. A journey that even the most open-minded, tolerant person can't understand until they've been through it themself.

We'll hopefully learn more about Thorpie's journey when he sits down with Parkie on Channel 10 tonight.

The tell-all, in which Thorpie finally tells all. Source: Channel 10

It's also been suggested that this isn't "news". Thorpie's a great athlete and an Australian legend and that's all that matters.

That's true, but Thorpie's news is still 'news' in every sense of the word.

It's news for the next gay kid who has to deal with the unbelievable pressure of being the best at something.

It's news for the gay kid who idolised Thorpie and has been struggling for years with his or her own demons.

Most importantly, it's news for the Brian Taylors of this world that you can still be a big poofter and an Australian hero.

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