Congratulations to Lee Pearson!
Yesterday, August 26, Lee Pearson took home his 12th gold medal in the Paralympics. The 47-year-old and his horse Breezer won the Grade II individual test in dressage at the Tokyo Paralympics, according to EuroSport. After his victory, the athlete shared a message of love for other LGBTQ people and differently-abled people.
“Love has to prevail, really,” Pearson told a reporter. “Whatever shape or form, I think love has to prevail. If you’re born with a disability, if you have a child with a disability, if you’re born with same-sex attraction, if your daughter comes out or your son, then just love them.”
Pearson also added the fact that we have to embrace our differences and embrace our neighbors despite our differences.
🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇🥇@SirLeePearson wins his 12th Paralympic gold medal at #Tokyo2020 for @ParalympicsGB 👑#C4Paralympics pic.twitter.com/0QGai2ClLE
— C4 Paralympics (@C4Paralympics) August 26, 2021
“Nobody wants to be different but we have to embrace different people because that’s society, that’s the world,” he shared. “Those different people they’re not going anywhere. So you can say it’s illegal, you can make them feel awful, but somewhere in the world another gay boy or girl will be born. Somewhere in the world someone will be born with no limbs. Do you know what I mean?”
While Lee Pearson sees himself as “just a horse rider,” he hopes to help bring about equality in his own way.
“Life goes on and it’s silly in this day and age when we have countries that are still in the stone age, as we say, 100 years behind,” Pearson explained. “But I’m just a horse rider. Promise.”
Despite calling himself “just a horse rider,” Lee Pearson has won 30 gold medals in European, World, and Paralympic competitions. As for the Paralympic games, Pearson has competed at Syndey, Athens, Beijing, London, Rio, and Tokyo. But despite his years of experience, Pearson stays humbled and honored by every victory. As he told British news source Your Horse, he felt “very, very emotional” after his recent gold medal win. The victory was especially emotional for him because of his horse.
“I cried on the second X on hold in the arena,” Lee Pearson shared. “It’s been such a long journey. Breezer is a horse who I’ve had since he was born. I am also a Dad myself now, and that has also made me more emotional.”
“I didn’t think having a home-bred horse would give this a little extra meaning but it has,” he added. “I saw [Breezer] at hours old in a field and to complete that test, which at my last test event I did not complete, that added to the emotion.”
Source: EuroSport, Your Horse,
Thank you for the gay positive speech.