Narumi Takahashi, former Olympian and pairs skater for Japan with Mervin Tran, has come out as queer. She participated in a talk at Pride House Tokyo on October 16th in which she stated she identified as queer.
Article (in Japanese)
It's really special that she's coming out. LGBTQ people/rights aren't viewed quite as favourably in Japan (same-sex marriage is not yet recognised) and very few athletes have come out, especially figure skaters. Considering that Narumi basically started pairs in Japan and has had such a major impact on the skating scene, hopefully this will pave the way for future athletes to feel comfortable coming out and being open in Japan.
Article (in Japanese)
It's really special that she's coming out. LGBTQ people/rights aren't viewed quite as favourably in Japan (same-sex marriage is not yet recognised) and very few athletes have come out, especially figure skaters. Considering that Narumi basically started pairs in Japan and has had such a major impact on the skating scene, hopefully this will pave the way for future athletes to feel comfortable coming out and being open in Japan.