Compete interview of Ben Cohen in anticipation of his US tour

From Compete:

Ben Cohen is a remarkable man — a rugby superstar and World Cup winner. England has rewarded him by naming Ben a Member of the British Empire. He’s a qualified helicopter pilot — and he replaced David Beckham as the Gay Times’ Sports Personality of the Year. He was nominated for a 2011 Logo New Now Next award. He’s won a gay following, not only because of how great he looks in or out of uniform, but because of his proactive role as a straight ally.

Ben is clinically deaf, and has helped publicize video clips specially designed to teach coaches and players specific British Sign Language terms for “rugby,” “tackle,” “attack,” etc. This can help make communication easier with deaf and hearing-impaired players. The clips can be found at www.ndcs.org.uk/rfu. In an interview with the UK newspaper The Independent Ben said, “Everyone in rugby knows me as ‘Eh?’ because of my deafness. It didn't stop me from becoming a professional player but it’s never been easy. ... I've also got tinnitus – a permanent ringing in the ears – which doesn't help. If the ability to sign rugby words helps more kids get into the game, it's got to be good.”

0504-ben-cohen-barnBeing deaf is similar in a number of ways to being gay. No one chooses to be deaf, or chooses to be gay. The members of the deaf community, like those of the gay community, are often invisible to members of the general population — not immediately identifiable unless they come out by their actions. Perhaps this is one of the reasons Ben has moved so well into a leadership role to encourage the international sports world to have a greater acceptance of diversity. He was one of the first professional athletes to provide his “It Gets Better” video on behalf of GBLT youth.

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