Over the weekend, freeskier Gus Kenworthy became the second openly gay member of the U.S. Olympic team heading to South Korea next month for the 2018 Winter Olympics. Kenworthy is perhaps the first openly gay Olympian to be featured in national advertising proudly waving a rainbow pride flag in a shampoo commercial.
“My shoulders carry more than my country’s pride,” he says in the clip, hoisting a rainbow flag. “They carry my community’s pride, my family’s pride, and pride in myself.”
In addition to participating in the shampoo commercial for Procter & Gamble, Kenworthy is starring in an upcoming Complex series that will examine his coming out story while competing as a world-class athlete.
While the clip won’t necessary compel everyone to run out and by anti-dandruff shampoo, it is a visible step forward.
