French paralympian Dimitri Pavadé recently opened up about his sexuality via an Instagram post, sharing a photo of him smiling while holding rainbow-colored interlocking male gender symbols.
A Google translation of his statement via HuffPost reads:
“Another fight awaits me now, and I was impatiently waiting for this moment. Here I am today, ready once again to face, overcome and move forward without taking into account what others may say or think of me.”
“Yes, I am SMALL, MIXED-RACE, ONE-LEGGED, and to add another layer, GAY!!!!!! The person I am, and like others, have never had to make a choice, so stop with your pitiful speeches and your judgments without reasoning because you will never change the world,” Pavadé further wrote on his lengthy caption.
He also mentioned wanting to “be the icon of people with disabilities”, as well as hopes to give “strength and courage” to those who have yet to come out of the closet.
Moreover, the para-athlete specializes in long jump, and he represented France at the 2020 and 2024 Paralympics. In 2020, Pavadé won a silver medal at the Tokyo Games. More recently, he won a bronze medal in the men’s long jump T64 classification final.
At the age of 18, Pavadé’s right leg was amputated after a work accident where he got hit by a forklift truck on Christmas Eve.
Sources: huffpost.com, en.wikipedia.org
Well written post on Instagram. All of us are a combination of a lot of things. Cherish who you are.