Cyclist Graeme Obree admits struggle with sexuality

Former world champion racer Graeme Obree has revealed how his struggle to come to terms with his sexuality led to two suicide attempts.

• Graeme Obree

The cycle track star from Ayrshire, who broke the world one-hour distance record in 1993 on his bike 'Old Faithful', said he just "closed down" while growing up.

Obree, 45, revealed in a newspaper interview the difficulties he encountered in his private life as he tried to accept he was gay.

He told the Scottish Sun: "I was brought up thinking you'd be better dead than gay.

"Being homosexual was so unthinkable that you just wouldn't be gay. I'd no inkling about anything, I just closed down.

"People say, 'How can you be gay and be married and have kids and not know it?'.

"But when I went to my psychologist she reckoned I had the emotional age of about 13 because I'd just closed down."

Obree began to talk about his sexuality to a psychologist in 2005 and then had to break the news to his wife - from whom he is now divorced - his children and his parents.

He told the newspaper: "It did create a bit of tension.

"My parents had to come to terms with the whole gay thing, it's been a journey for them.

"It was difficult and there were lots of tears. It wasn't easy. But the relationship with my parents has been improved by it.

"We talked about it and discussed things and we're a lot happier."

Obree was the individual pursuit world champion in 1993 and 1995.

His autobiography The Flying Scotsman was turned into a film starring Jonny Lee Miller and Billy Boyd in 2006.