The thing in Sasha's hand, I believe is an identification badge that is worn around the skater's and other official skating personnel's necks at skating events to identify them and allow them access to backstage.
On another note, about the whole gay/straight issue...it IS obviously a continuing issue if it stirs up so much disperate opinions. Just know that other than some gays feeling socially isolated (gays sure don't have the market on this) and also having to "guess at what normal is", because the world is geared toward the general heterosexual community (still not entirely a bane of existence that is wholly belonging to the gay community) there is surprising little difference in the humanity of gays and straights.
And, just because you know one, two or a few gay folks doesn't mean you may know all about gay folk. Gays, as a group, are as diverse as the rest of the population. But hey, that means if you don't point out the "obvious" gay folk, the rest are just boring, everyday folks like the rest of the people in society.
That means when Todd and Rudi competed at nats in 96 that both of them wanted it equally badly, both work extremely hard to achieve their goals, both drew from their emotional inner lives to give the performance they wanted and neither wanted to lose. I only bring this up because it is the most obvious example of where a straight man and a gay man went head to head in competition where I actually KNEW the sexual preference of the skaters.
How does this relate to the topic at hand???
Well from all I've been able to see and take in, It seems to me that there are just as many gay men that need the Fab 5's help as there are straight men (per capita, so to speak) and plenty of straight men that help there girlfriends,wives, and other significant women in their fashion choices.
In fact, if you want to throw out some "anticdotal evidence", take my brother and sister-in-law...she's long descovered that when it comes to decorating and color matching, my brother has more skill than she. Being the evolved creature she is, she gets him to pick colors and fashions, THEN she gets "final approval". I may hasten to add that this is when she can get him to stop watching the football/basketball/baseball game or stepping outside to chomp on one of those nasty cigars of which he's so fond.
My point to this long and rambling tome? That sexuality and gender are fluid and not "black and white" issues where you can say..."my 'gaydar' is great, I'm SURE that I KNOW when someone is gay or not" ....come on down and discuss it with the guys and gals at Woofs in Atlanta...it's a gay sports bar where there are snappy dressers and guys and gals in jeans and "grubbies"...either way, I doubt you'll find a sequin in the place...just a thought