Sydney, Mar 7 (IANS): Australia's LGBTQI community remembered the Australian cricket legend Shane Warne, who died aged 52 on March 4 in Thailand, as an ally for his support for marriage equality and more recently the use of gender-neutral pronouns in cricket.
An autopsy report on Monday confirmed that Australia's legendary cricketer Shane Warne had died from natural causes. The prolific leg-spinner had died on the island of Koh Samui in Thailand after suffering a suspected heart attack on Friday. A Warne associate had tried to resuscitate the former cricketer for almost 20 minutes before the ambulance arrived but he was declared dead on arrival in hospital.
While tributes flowed from across the cricketing world for the legendary spin bowler for his contributions to the game, Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras was being held at the Sydney Cricket Ground, where Warne played many games. Mardi Gras organisers acknowledged the cricketer as a proud ally to the community.
"Shane was an outspoken supporter of the LGBTQIA+ community and a proud ally," Mardi Gras organisers said in a message on social media. "Team Mardi Gras sends our love and thoughts to Shane's family, friends and fans at this time."
"The outpouring of grief today shows that Shane Warne was deeply loved by many and will be sorely missed by people around the world. Seeing members of the LGBTIQA+ community share their personal stories and reflections about the man -- how he supported and encouraged all young cricketers to have a go, advocated publicly as an ally, and stood up against homophobia even when there were no cameras around - demonstrates why many of us connected with him and will be mourning his passing," Melbourne-based LGBTQI activist Nevena Spirovska was quoted as saying by Star Observer.
Trans handball player and 2018 Victorian LGBT Sportsperson of the Year Hannah Mouncey paid tributes to the cricketer and recalled an interaction with Warne on social media.
"One of the very, very few people who left themselves wide open by giving a bit of support when I had nothing, no one, and most needed it. My tweet was nothing to do with footy, he made it about it and in doing so gave me more of a lift he will never know. A true legend Shane Warne," Mouncey said on Twitter.
Warne was one of the few prominent voices in the conservative world of cricket, who was a vocal ally to the LGBTQI community. In 2017, during the contentious debate around Australia's national vote on marriage equality, Warne posted on Twitter that he supported same-sex marriages.
"I agree 100% !!!! #marriageequaility," Warne said in an August 2017 post, while responding to a message from a now-deleted Twitter account of Margot Robbie.