New Delhi: India ace sprinter 100 m record-holders and winner of two Asian Games silver medals Dutee Chand became the first sportsperson of India to admit of being in a same-sex relationship.
Dutee revealed that she has been in a relationship with a girl for the past three years. While the couple had not thought of it as a long- term affair, the historic Supreme Court judgment in September 2018, which de-criminalised same-sex relationships between consenting adults, provided the impetus for them to arrive at a decision of spending their lives with each other.
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Dutee said, “She is from my town and a sports fan herself. She read about the struggles that I have gone through to make a career in sports and told me that she was inspired by my story. That is how we came in touch with each other.”
However, Dutee refused to reveal the name of her partner. Dutee said that her decision to make the information public was based on her belief that she has the right to live her life the way she wants it.
“What we are doing is no crime. It is our life and we have the right to live it the way we deem right. I am in the public eye now because I am playing for the country but I will still have a lot of life left to live once I leave sports,” she added.