Former rugby league international Kane Evans has publicly come out as gay in one of the most emotional interviews the sport has seen in years.
The former NRL player revealed that he had spent nearly two decades struggling with his sexuality while trying to build a successful career in professional sport.
Evans played more than 130 matches in Australia’s National Rugby League and represented Fiji on the international stage.
To many fans, he appeared to have achieved everything he had ever dreamed of.
Behind the scenes, however, he was fighting a very different battle.
During an interview, Evans spoke openly about knowing he was gay from a young age.
He explained that he spent years trying to suppress that part of himself because he feared the consequences of being openly gay in professional rugby league.
The pressure took a heavy toll on his mental health.
Evans described struggling with addiction, depression, and suicidal thoughts while attempting to maintain the image he believed others expected of him.
At various points in his life, he also experienced homelessness and found himself isolated from many of the support systems around him.
The turning point came when former player Joe Galuvao and the Rugby League Players’ Association helped him access rehabilitation and mental health support.
Evans also credited Sydney Roosters coach Trent Robinson for reaching out and offering practical and emotional assistance during one of the darkest periods of his life.
Those interventions helped him begin rebuilding his life.
Today, Evans says he is sober, healthier, and finally learning how to live authentically.
He explained that speaking publicly about his sexuality removed years of fear, shame, and guilt that had weighed on him for much of his adult life.
Following the interview, support poured in from across the rugby community.
Among those praising Evans was Ian Roberts, who became the first Australian rugby league player to publicly come out as gay in 1995.
Roberts described Evans’ decision as courageous and deeply important.
Many observers noted that Evans is only the second high-profile Australian rugby league player to come out publicly.
That fact alone highlights how much pressure many LGBTQ+ athletes still face.
Evans hopes his story will encourage others who may be struggling with similar feelings.
He says nobody should feel forced to carry that burden alone.
For many fans, the most powerful part of his story is not that he came out.
It is that after years of pain, he now says he feels peace.
And for someone who once believed that peace was impossible, that may be the most remarkable victory of all.
📸 IG: @kevansthemandem