Monday was another great day in the gayest Olympics in history.
One more Olympian was added to the list of 46-plus out LGBT athletes competing this year, when Italian distance swimmer Rachele Bruni casually came out by dedicating her medal to her girlfriend.
Bruni won silver in Monday’s waterlogged 10k race, thanking her “beloved” for the support. Later, when Italian reporters asked to her clarify whether she meant girlfriend Diletta Faina, she assured them that she did.
“I’ve always lived naturally, without problems. I’ve never done a big coming out,” Bruni told Italy’s La Stampa in Italian that has been roughly translated. “Undoubtedly there are people who have too many prejudices, but I live peacefully. I do not think about the prejudices, I live for myself, for my passion for swimming and for the people who love me.”
Addressing what it means to come out as LGBT in sports, Bruni added that she didn’t necessarily think of herself as “brave.”
“For us, it is normal,” Bruni said. “The blame, if anything, is the hypocrisy of the people.”
The couple were in Rio together; La Stampa showed screengrabs from Faina’s private Instagram account of selfies wearing her girlfriend’s new silver medal. The couple also frequently posts selfies together on Twitter, where Faina can be found fan-girling over Orange Is the New Black and pretty much anything Jennifer Lawrence-related.
https://twitter.com/bruni_rachele/status/579368998804017153
@Melisuperstar @LauraPrepon tanto devo vedere se arrivo viva dato che guida @bruni_rachele pic.twitter.com/atesZ6AHDR
— Diletta Faina (@DileBuu) March 4, 2016
Bruni’s chill coming-out moment wasn’t the only notable part of her race Monday. Her French competitor, Aurelie Muller, was disqualified from the contest after a neck-and-neck swim in which Muller reached out and aggressively dunked Bruni’s head underwater.
Muller would have won silver, with Bruni in third place—but after judges chastised and then disqualified her for the shove, Bruni stepped into second.