PHOTOS: Meet The Olympic Baes Of Team USA

The Olympics are officially underway, and while the ramp-up hasn’t been without its fair share of terrible press — everything from raw sewage in the water to inadequate housing for athletes to that pesky ‘ole zika — at the end of the day, audiences will still tune in to catch top athletes competing at the highest level on the world’s biggest stage.

And oh — these athletes!

Not only are there a record number of LGBTQ competitors this year, Team USA is chock full of major babes.

NBC recently took a closer look at the baes of team red, white and blue.

Let’s get to know these sporty fellas:

Jordan Burroughs — wrestling

A photo posted by Jordan Burroughs (@alliseeisgold) on Jul 29, 2016 at 4:05pm PDT

A photo posted by Jordan Burroughs (@alliseeisgold) on Jul 19, 2016 at 1:44pm PDT

A photo posted by Jordan Burroughs (@alliseeisgold) on Jun 29, 2016 at 10:30am PDT

Ashton Eaton — decathlon

A photo posted by Eaton (@weareeaton) on Jun 16, 2016 at 10:15am PDT

A photo posted by Eaton (@weareeaton) on Jun 6, 2016 at 12:35pm PDT

Ryan Lochte — swimming

A photo posted by Ryanlochte (@ryanlochte) on May 16, 2016 at 7:30am PDT

A photo posted by Ryanlochte (@ryanlochte) on Apr 16, 2016 at 11:47am PDT

Jake Dalton — gymnastics

A photo posted by Jake Dalton (@jake_dalton) on Aug 1, 2016 at 10:33am PDT

A photo posted by Jake Dalton (@jake_dalton) on Jul 18, 2016 at 4:42pm PDT

A photo posted by Jake Dalton (@jake_dalton) on Jul 7, 2016 at 9:40am PDT

Nathan Adrian — swimming

A photo posted by Nathan Adrian (@nathangadrian) on Jul 26, 2016 at 5:25pm PDT

A photo posted by Nathan Adrian (@nathangadrian) on May 14, 2016 at 6:17am PDT

Sam Mikulak — gymnastics

A photo posted by Samuel Mikulak (@samuelmikulak) on Jul 10, 2016 at 4:11pm PDT

A photo posted by Samuel Mikulak (@samuelmikulak) on Jun 25, 2016 at 2:29pm PDT

A photo posted by Samuel Mikulak (@samuelmikulak) on Apr 6, 2016 at 4:21pm PDT

Daryl Homer — fencing

A photo posted by Daryl Homer (@daryldhomer) on Jul 11, 2016 at 1:03pm PDT

A photo posted by Daryl Homer (@daryldhomer) on Jul 16, 2016 at 6:19am PDT

A photo posted by Daryl Homer (@daryldhomer) on May 28, 2016 at 11:13am PDT

John Mann — water polo

A photo posted by John Mann (@instaamann) on Aug 3, 2016 at 5:06pm PDT

A photo posted by John Mann (@instaamann) on Jul 28, 2016 at 1:39pm PDT

A photo posted by John Mann (@instaamann) on Apr 2, 2016 at 8:45am PDT

David Oliver — track and field

A photo posted by David Oliver (@doliversub13) on Aug 25, 2015 at 11:20pm PDT

A photo posted by David Oliver (@doliversub13) on Nov 20, 2014 at 10:08am PST

David Boudia — diving

A photo posted by David Boudia (@davidboudia) on Jul 4, 2016 at 9:56am PDT

A photo posted by David Boudia (@davidboudia) on May 21, 2014 at 10:25am PDT

A photo posted by David Boudia (@davidboudia) on Jul 7, 2016 at 5:53pm PDT

Danell Leyva — gymnastics

A photo posted by Danell J Leyva (@danelljleyva) on Jul 18, 2016 at 9:20am PDT

A photo posted by Danell J Leyva (@danelljleyva) on Dec 2, 2015 at 7:31am PST

A photo posted by Danell J Leyva (@danelljleyva) on Aug 18, 2015 at 4:27pm PDT

Madison Hughes — rugby

A photo posted by Madison Hughes (@madisonhughes10) on Jun 22, 2016 at 7:45pm PDT

A photo posted by Madison Hughes (@madisonhughes10) on Mar 16, 2016 at 4:49pm PDT

Trayvon Bromell — track and field

A photo posted by BulletBromell (@trayvonbromell) on Jun 16, 2016 at 10:15am PDT

Carlin Isles — rugby

A photo posted by Carlin Isles (@carlinisles) on Jul 18, 2016 at 8:54am PDT

A photo posted by Carlin Isles (@carlinisles) on Jun 27, 2016 at 7:26am PDT

Carlos Balderas — boxing

A photo posted by USABoxing (@usaboxing) on Nov 9, 2015 at 1:33pm PST

Conor Dwyer — swimming

A photo posted by Conor Dwyer (@conorjdwyer) on Jul 27, 2016 at 7:57am PDT

A photo posted by Conor Dwyer (@conorjdwyer) on Dec 10, 2015 at 2:15pm PST

A photo posted by Conor Dwyer (@conorjdwyer) on Apr 15, 2015 at 9:50am PDT

Alex Naddour — gymnastics

A photo posted by Alex Naddour (@alex_naddour) on Jul 29, 2016 at 5:36pm PDT

A photo posted by Alex Naddour (@alex_naddour) on Jun 29, 2016 at 1:49pm PDT

A photo posted by Alex Naddour (@alex_naddour) on Jun 6, 2016 at 3:02am PDT

Steele Johnson — diving

A photo posted by Steele Johnson (@steele_johnson) on Jun 28, 2016 at 6:56pm PDT

A photo posted by Steele Johnson (@steele_johnson) on May 1, 2016 at 10:05am PDT

A photo posted by Steele Johnson (@steele_johnson) on Jan 11, 2016 at 7:26pm PST

Isiah Young — track and field

A photo posted by Isiah Young (@isiahyoung) on Jun 28, 2013 at 11:17pm PDT

A photo posted by Isiah Young (@isiahyoung) on Apr 29, 2013 at 8:54am PDT

Chris Brooks — gymnastics

A photo posted by Chris Brooks (@cbrooks_gym) on Jul 25, 2016 at 5:40pm PDT

A photo posted by Chris Brooks (@cbrooks_gym) on Aug 12, 2015 at 6:23pm PDT

A photo posted by Chris Brooks (@cbrooks_gym) on Aug 22, 2014 at 10:07am PDT

Lucas Schrimsher — modern pentathlon

A photo posted by Lucas Schrimsher (@l.schrimsher) on Jul 10, 2016 at 4:42pm PDT

A photo posted by Lucas Schrimsher (@l.schrimsher) on Mar 13, 2016 at 5:34pm PDT

Logan Dooley — trampoline

A photo posted by Logan Dooley (@dooleylogan) on Sep 19, 2015 at 9:29am PDT

A photo posted by Logan Dooley (@dooleylogan) on Jul 19, 2015 at 12:58pm PDT

Connor Fields — BMX cycling

A photo posted by Connor Fields (@cf11) on Jul 28, 2016 at 5:59pm PDT

A photo posted by Connor Fields (@cf11) on Jun 26, 2016 at 6:56pm PDT

A photo posted by Connor Fields (@cf11) on Oct 4, 2015 at 7:59pm PDT

Matt Centrowitz, track and field

A photo posted by Matthew Centrowitz (@mgcentro) on Jul 16, 2016 at 12:01pm PDT

A photo posted by Matthew Centrowitz (@mgcentro) on Jul 11, 2016 at 9:59am PDT

A photo posted by Matthew Centrowitz (@mgcentro) on Feb 1, 2016 at 1:23pm PST

feedproxy.google.com/~r/queerty2/~3/NyjGq2FY62M/photos-meet-baes-team-usa-20160806

Delta Air Lines Removes Gay Kissing from Oscar-Nominated Film ‘Carol’

Delta Air Lines is screening a version of the Oscar-nominated film Carol for passengers in its in-flight entertainment program which deletes kisses between Rooney Mara and Cate Blanchett, according to a report in AfterEllen.

The censorship of the Todd Haynes film was first brought to their attention by comic Cameron Esposito:

Watched CAROL on a plane & they edited it so the main characters never even kiss. Booooooo.

Two women kissing is fine for planes.

— Cameron Esposito (@cameronesposito) August 3, 2016

A bunch of queer gals responded that they watched CAROL on a plane & didn’t know the main characters kiss. THEY KISS t.co/XTAU19BPga

— Cameron Esposito (@cameronesposito) August 4, 2016

But apparently heterosexual BDSM is just fine:

BTW my seatmate totally watching something where Paul Giamatti was participating in BDSM w/ a lady but CAROL had no kissing!?

VERY MAD.

— Cameron Esposito (@cameronesposito) August 3, 2016

AfterEllen later received this explanation from Delta:

“There were two versions of this film that the studio makes available–one that is edited and one that is not edited. The edited version removes two explicit scenes that do not meet our guidelines. The edited version also removes all kissing. The other version is fully non-edited and includes the kissing, but it also includes the explicit scenes.  Unfortunately, Delta doesn’t have the rights to edit the movie, or to make the decision to keep some of that content (e.g. kissing).

Because of the explicit scenes included in the non-edited version, we chose the edited version. This is consistent with what is available to all airlines.”

The Weinstein Company has not responded to a request to comment.

The post Delta Air Lines Removes Gay Kissing from Oscar-Nominated Film ‘Carol’ appeared first on Towleroad.

feeds.towleroad.com/~r/towleroad/feed/~3/Z79AQy-_4d4/

Julian Assange Tells Bill Maher Wikileaks is ‘Working On’ Hacking Trump’s Tax Returns: WATCH

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange got a good grilling last night from Bill Maher over why his organization appears to be “working with a bad actor—Russia” and “putting [his] thumb on the scale to basically f**k with the one person who stands in the way of us being ruled by Donald Trump.”

Assange dodged that question by volleying one back to Maher, asking about a ‘William Maher’ who gave money to a Clinton-funded organization and asks if Maher plans to donate $1 million to Clinton as he did to Obama.

“F**k no,” replies Maher.

Adds Assange:

“We’re really good at this. We have a 10-year perfect record of never having got it wrong in relation to the integrity of what we release. There’s no allegation, even from Debbie Wasserman Schultz or any of these people, that any of the material is not completely valid and true. What there is, is a conflation between our publications—the DNC leaks—and an extensive variety of hacks of the DNC, and frankly other organizations over the last two years, possibly by state actors, that wasn’t at all surprising.”

“Why don’t you hack into Donald Trump’s tax returns?”, Maher asks.

“Well, we’re working on it,” replies Assange.

Also on the call – whether it was fair game to release the names of Democratic donors, and the idea of a “smoking gun” in the DNC emails,

Watch:

The post Julian Assange Tells Bill Maher Wikileaks is ‘Working On’ Hacking Trump’s Tax Returns: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

feeds.towleroad.com/~r/towleroad/feed/~3/TnzbFJwmpD0/

Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio’s Opening Ceremonies

Tongan flagbearer Pita Taufatofua, a taekwondo athlete, broke the internet when he entered the stadium in Rio leading his country’s contingent, greased up and smiling broadly.

Commentating for NBC Sports, Meredith Vieira nearly fell off her chair when Taufatofua entered.

“Oh, Look at Tonga,” she explained. “Wow, look at Tonga!”

Said Hoda Kotb, “Slow that down! We’ll just live here for a minute.”

“He just became a sensation in Brazil. I can tell you that.”

 

The WSJ reports:

He is expected to compete in the men’s 80 kg division of taekwondo on Friday, Aug. 19. He appeared to be confident in his path as long as five years ago when Taufatofua visited a taekwondo museum in South Korea. He signed the guestbook: “Pita Taufatofua. Taekwondo Tonga. Future Olympian.”

Taufatofua has modeling experience under his belt already, including showcasing wedding wear for Australian events company Turning Paige. Company owner Kira Keam said the Tongan was not paid to don formalwear for the shoot, which was designed to demonstrate the work of other designers to potential clients.

In related news:

There are a record 44 out LGBTI athletes who will compete in Rio, as well as three coaches, according to Outsports.com. (Four years ago in London, there were only 23.) There is also one married couple, Helen Richardson-Walsh and Kate Richardson-Walsh, British field hockey players, as well as 11 publicly out male athletes — another record — though none are from the U.S.

Yet.

The numbers keep growing. A list of openly LGBTI athletes compiled by outsports.com on July 11 had 27 names. Today, 42 athletes are out and proud. Just yesterday, NBA star Elena Delle Donne publicly came out on an interview with Vogue — and that was huge: one of the world’s hottest basketball players right now, Donne was recently voted Most Valuable Player by the NBA. “She is a once-in-a generation type of player,” NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum told Vogue. 

Here are some more photos of Taufatofua from his Instagram account:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh, we didn’t miss it!

The post Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio’s Opening Ceremonies appeared first on Towleroad.

feeds.towleroad.com/~r/towleroad/feed/~3/7k56Ypg4PWc/

How Meryl Streep's Trans Music Teacher Opened Her Eyes to LGBT Acceptance

The Florence Foster Jenkins star discussed the impact of LGBT music teachers in her childhood as well as Hollywood’s ongoing glass closet.

www.advocate.com/arts-entertainment/2016/8/05/how-meryl-streeps-trans-music-teacher-opened-her-eyes-lgbt-acceptance

Does This Video Show Britney Spears Realizing Ryan Seacrest Isn’t Gay? – WATCH

A video from 2013 has resurfaced online showing a Spears appearing shocked at the suggestion that Ryan Seacrest is straight.

Seacrest has long been a punchline of gay jokes, perhaps most famously lobbed by comedienne Kathy Griffin. Over the years, Seacrest has even been known to make a few jokes himself about the media speculation regarding his sexuality.

In the newly re-discovered video, Seacrest, Spears and Will.I.Am discuss Spears’ then latest album Britney Jean. At one point in the interview, Seacrest and Will.I.Am talk about picking out perfume for their girlfriends. Then, Spears appears to look shocked and ask in a sotto voce aside directed at Will.I.Am, “Girl?” As if to say, “Ryan Seacrest has a ‘girl’? A girlfriend? Ryan Seacrest likes girls?” Or at least that’s how the video is being interpreted on social media. 

Watch and decide for yourself, below.

that time when britney realized ryan seacrest wasn’t gay pic.twitter.com/uxEezW19RG

— renan (@renanwho) August 5, 2016

[h/t BuzzFeed]

The post Does This Video Show Britney Spears Realizing Ryan Seacrest Isn’t Gay? – WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

feeds.towleroad.com/~r/towleroad/feed/~3/MVYv-ir3CEk/

Ugandan Activists 'Stand Prouder' After Police Raid LGBT Pride

Before police began a violent raid, guests at a Uganda Pride celebration said the environment at the pageant was “beautiful and electric.”

www.advocate.com/world/2016/8/05/ugandan-activists-stand-prouder-after-police-raid-lgbt-pride

Gaycation's Ellen Page and Ian Daniel Pay Emotional Visit to Orlando (Video)

www.advocate.com/video/2016/8/05/gaycations-ellen-page-and-ian-daniel-pay-emotional-visit-orlando-video