Published in Next Magazine, April 14, 2011.
“Saints & Scrummers”
By Jeff Kagan
In 1972, Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571 carrying the Stella Maris College rugby team crashed while flying over the Andes Mountains. They were on their way to Santiago de Chile for a match but they never made it. Only 16 of the 45 people on board survived, being stranded in the snowy mountain tops for two and half months, turning to cannibalism in order to live. Their story of strength and resilience echoed throughout the world and touched so many people.
Growing up in Montevideo, Juan Pablo Heins knew their story well. When he as a young man, he remembered meeting two of the survivors, Nando and Roberto; they left a lasting impression on him. “I went to the TV station to meet them. It wasn't so much what they said to me, but the fact that they were tough guys, playing tough sports – they survived a tragedy, and moved on to have very prolific lives.”
Juan Pablo didn’t have much of a knack for sports as a child. He was usually chosen last on teams in gym class. This didn’t make things easy for him when seeking out the inclusiveness that is usually only found in a team sports setting. He avoided team sports altogether.
When he was 19, Juan Pablo lost his father. Shortly after, he met some Mormon missionaries while trying to understand the purpose of his life. He became a missionary, as well, and went to Colombia for two years to preach the gospel. His next step was to enroll at Brigham Young University and over the course of the next five years he realized that as a gay man in the Mormon church he had to make a decision: to be honest with himself or to live his life as a lie. He left the church and moved to Salt Lake City, and then eventually to New York.
Living in Brooklyn, and always on the go, Juan Pablo decided it was time to find something healthy to do in the little spare time he had. He didn’t want to work out at a gym -- he felt a team sport might be more fulfilling. Thinking back to his childhood and the impressionable meeting with the two legendary survivors, Juan Pablo got in touch with the Gotham Knights Rugby Football Club.
“I had no idea how to play and didn't know the rules of the game. But everyone on my team was very helpful at explaining things and I've been watching a lot of the games since to learn more,” he said.
Juan Pablo quickly saw how the hard-hitting Gotham Knights not only break their opponent’s winning streaks, but they also break stereotypes. “It is a tradition that after every game we go out with the opposing team to a bar and drink together. We are the only gay rugby team in the city so we always play ‘straight’ teams. I feel that, in a way, we represent our community in the straight sports world and give them yet another perspective of gay men.”
He smiles and adds, “A gay Latino ex-Mormon rugby player breaks the stereotype just a little.”
For more information on the Gotham Knights Rugby Football Club, go to www.gothamrfc.org.
Quickies
Sweaty Balls: The Jesters and the Fusion travelled to Tampa, Florida to play in the Gasparilla Softball Classic over President's Day weekend! The Fusion seeded #1 after their round robin! The Jesters finished 9th out of 25 teams after being seeded 23rd in the round robin. Congrats to both teams for a great weekend of softball! Learn more about playing in the Big Apple Softball League at www.bigapplesoftball.com.
Eight Balls: The New York Gay Pool League has just wrapped up its 26th 8-Ball season. Going into the Quarter-finals, the top 3 teams were Eagle, Boxers, and Amsterdam BC. Eagle got knocked out, and Chi-Chiz, Boxers, Boxer’s Briefs, and Amsterdam BC advanced to the semi’s. The final match was a Boxers ‘Subway Series’, and Boxers beat the Briefs in a very close 2-night victory, 8-6 and 8-7! More at www.nygpl.org.
Bouncy Balls: Front Runners New York congratulates all the participants in the 12th Annual FRNY Track Meet, which was held on March 18 at the Armory Track. We set records for the most participants ever with 245 athletes competing, and more Front Runners competing than ever before. Special thanks to Meet Directors Kelsey Louie and Derek Petti, as well as to the many volunteers who kept things running smoothly! More at www.frny.org.
Manly Balls: NYC Gay Basketball League’s Spring 2011 Season is off to a kick-ass start. In the Gym Bar Division, Team Gym Bar is 4-0 followed by Eagle Bar at 3-1. The Boxers Division has three teams all fighting for first place: Splash Bar, Bone Lick Park and Boxers. Come check the boys out The Field House at Chelsea Piers Pier 61 on the Hudson River. Free to spectators! More at www.nycgaybasketball.org.
No Balls. Just Pucks: NYC Gay Hockey Association Division 7B and Division 8 are wrapping up their Fall 2010-2011 Season. The D7B Wizards are going for the gold as they’ve made it to the best-of-three championship round of the playoffs for the first time in their seven-year history. The Division 8 Hotshots fared better than their sister teams, the Tigers and Polar Bears, making the playoffs, but they were eliminated in Round 1 in a tough 3-2 loss against the Scapegoats on March 26th. NYCGHA is launching their newest team on April 16th: the Boxers! More at www.nycgayhockey.org.
