“When Scott Heggart came out he was surprised at the reaction of fellow hockey players on his Ottawa minor-league team. 

The sports-loving teen had spent years worrying about how family and friends would react to his sexuality. But he mostly worried about what his athletic teammates would say.

Heggart recently told the Ottawa Citizen he’d learned quickly in sports that the worst thing is to be a fag or homo. But when he eventually opened a Facebook account, changed his relationship status and shared a photo of his boyfriend, a strange thing happened. 

Heggart received one private message from a friend: “What you did man, it takes a lot of courage and I’m proud of you. And I’ve been talking to a lot of people and they all say the same thing.”