Words by Smiley Team
In positive news for LGBTQ+ rights, the Queen’s New Year Honours List 2-22 featured British gold medalist and Olympian diver, Tom Daley. The 27-year-old sports hero was awarded for services to "diving, LGBTQ+ rights and charity".
“I'm extremely proud to be honoured with an OBE,” he said in a BBC interview, adding: “Now being an OBE, I feel it's almost like a responsibility to make the whole Commonwealth a better place for LGBT people, for women, for people of colour, to make it a more inclusive and more accepting environment.”
“Accepting this OBE, [it's] now my responsibility to try and help create change and help create this environment where everybody can be anything that they want, no matter where they came from.”
For Tom, campaigning for equality for LGBTQ+ people and other marginalised groups has become a central part of his life.
The young athlete previously advocated for improved LGBTQ+ rights internationally in an ‘Alternative Christmas Message’ broadcasted by Channel 4.
[Read more positive news about people pushing for all kinds of equality around the world]
He said: “In 2022 the World Cup is being held in the second most dangerous country for queer people, Qatar. Why are we allowing places that aren’t safe for all fans and all players to host our most prestigious sporting events?”
He added that he feels “incredibly lucky” to be supported as an LGBTQ+ individual by his sporting community, but that should be the case for everyone.
After receiving an OBE, Tom wishes to campaign harder than ever to pursue this goal.
He added: “Accepting an OBE is one thing but accepting it and doing something with it, taking it from just being an OBE to being something where I can help people so that, no matter where they're born, no matter where they come from, that they feel like they can be involved in anything.”
