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PHOTOS: Ireland’s first openly gay strongman has something to show you
Chris McNaghten is an openly gay strongman from Ireland.
“I’m the first openly gay strongman to come out in the UK and Ireland, possibly even Europe,” 30-year-old McNaghten tells the Irish Sun.
But that’s not what he wants to be known for.
“I want to be Ireland’s strongest man,” he explains. “I don’t want to be Ireland’s strongest gay man.”
“The shock that people have that you’re gay — I don’t think it’s something that matters to me. I generally just think it’s gossip.”
McNaghten says he’s noticed more than a few parallels between being a strongman and drag queen performances.
“Drag is about putting on a performance and about performing for people. It’s the exact same way whenever I’m on stage competing.”
He adds, “I absolutely love drag queens. They’re the mummies of the gay world.”
As for coming out, McNaghten says that took some courage, especially when coming out to his strongman peers.
“There was one person who was a coach to me and had been a best friend for a long time and it was important for me that he was okay with it and he accepted it,” he explains.
“I was just as nervous about telling him about it as I was about my dad. It was a wee bit emotional, that was just a massive weight off my back.”
Scroll down for more pics from McNaghten’s Instagram page…
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