4. Sam Stanley
England Sevens international Sam Stanley became the first English professional rugby union player to publicly come out as gay in August 2015.
Now 26, the former Saracens back played in five Sevens World Series tournaments for England and belongs to one of the sport’s most famous families.
5. Mark Bingham
Not a professional but deserves a special mention. Mark, a gay rugby fan and sportsman, was a passenger on Flight 93 on September 11th, 2001.
Bingham is widely credited with helping prevent further deaths when he helped lead a passenger revolt against hijackers who had seized control of the plane and begun to direct it towards a target in Washington DC.
Rushing the cockpit and risking their own lives, the passengers successfully overthrew the hijackers and managed to bring down the plane in a field.
