Hockey player Jesse Kortuem, who played as a defenseman and center in several leagues before walking away from the sport, has publicly come out as gay, crediting “Heated Rivalry” as partially inspiring his statement.
The athlete took to Facebook on Tuesday, where he opened up about embracing his sexuality after hiding it for years amid his athletic pursuits.
“In hockey, there is nothing like hitting the ice after the Zamboni leaves behind a fresh, smooth sheet of ice,” Kortuem wrote on social media. “For many hockey players, the sound of skates carving on that fresh ice is just a normal part of warm-ups before a game or practice. But for me, it is the sound of a place where I felt I had to hide.”
As Kortuem continued, he noted that he has since returned to hockey via The Cutting Edges Hockey Club, who he thanked for hosting him at their Winter Classic in Sun Peaks, BC — where he notably wore a jersey that represented both his sport and his community.
“It felt like a bridge being built over a gap I had lived with for decades,” he added. “I am a private person. Those who know me best know that I don’t share much if anything publicly on social media, but lately, something has sparked in me (ok – yes credit to #HeatedRivalry). I realized it is finally time to share a journey I have kept close to the vest for a long time.”
Per Kortuem, while he loved hockey more than anything, he confessed that he lived in “persistent fear” that his sexuality would be discovered.
He noted: “I wondered how I could be gay and still play such a tough and masculine sport. To my younger self, that identity could never be revealed. I did not think those two worlds could occupy the same person, let alone the same locker room. Coming out in the 2000s did not feel like an option, especially with so little positive representation in the media at the time.”
Later in life, Kortuem played at a “high level,” but felt too insecure to come out publicly. (He did note that those in his inner circle were well aware that he was gay.)
“Like many closeted athletes, revealing who I truly was to my team would change everything in an instant, their opinion of me, could bring negative attention to the team with the ‘gay player,’” he shared. “So I never took the chance. I spent every week in a locker room with guys I respected, yet I still did not feel safe enough to tell them who I truly was.”
Kortuem said he began to “reconcile these two halves of [his] life” after choosing to participate in a gay hockey tournament in 2017, noting that “from that moment forward, [his] life has never been the same.”
On his decision to come out, he said, “I want to speak to the athletes out there who are still in the closet or struggling to find their way.” Read his full statement here.
Kortuem further praised the influence of “Heated Rivalry” in an interview with Out Magazine about his coming out, noting, “I know many closeted and gay men in the hockey world are being hit hard by ‘Heated Rivalry’s success. Never in my life did I think something so positive and loving could come from such a masculine sport. I’ve struggled the last few weeks to put these emotions into words, fearing the impact on team dynamics, etc.”
Based on the “Game Changers” book series, “Heated Rivalry” follows two hockey stars (played by Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie) as they fall into a secret romance that spans years.
The show has already nabbed a Season 2 renewal from Crave and HBO Max, where all the episodes from Season 1 are available to stream.
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