Mark Foster found himself in the spotlight during the Rio Olympics last summer, when he was romantically linked to Rebecca Adlington. Now, having recently come out as gay, the British swimmer opened up about his decision not to deny the rumours, revealing that he didn't want to feel "pushed" into speaking about his sexuality. In a candid interview on Loose Women, the 47-year-old addressed the speculation surrounding him and Rebecca. "In my private life, my friends and family have always known, but then over the Olympic Games with Rebecca Adlington last year there was a sensationalism that me and her were having a [thing]," he said. Asked if that might have been an opportune moment to address his sexuality, Mark replied: "You don't want to be pushed."
Mark Foster has spoken about the romance rumours surrounding him and Rebecca Adlington
Mark recently came out as gay in an interview in the Guardian. Speaking to the newspaper, he also addressed the romance rumours, which were escalated further when Rebecca was seen on camera squeezing Mark's leg. He told the publication: "There was that stuff about Becky, but she knows I'm gay and knows my other half. We're good mates and when she doesn't want to answer anything on live television she'll squeeze my leg and I take over. It became a huge story. I should have said, 'Don't be daft. I'm gay.'"
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During his appearance on Loose Women, Mark revealed that his family have always known he is gay, but that he kept his sexuality from friends and his swimming colleagues. "If I look back, I first met my first partner when I was 21 years of age and was in relationship for 19 years, and met someone else and fell in love with them for seven years. It was a situation where to friends and family I was out. It took me a couple of years to tell my mum. When I went to work, which was swimming, I lived in Cambridge and went to Bath during the week, my friends there and all my swimming colleagues, no one knew. I never shared it, I was Mark the swimmer there and Mark the real person when I came home."
The British Olympic swimmer appeared on Loose Women on Thursday
The sportsman also shared his fears that coming out could have negatively impacted his swimming career, adding: "Sport is an interesting one anyway, but going back to when I was a kid, being gay was wrong. Typically you should meet a woman, get married, have kids, get a house and that's the way it worked, that's what you get taught."