ABOVE: Watch diver Tom Daley talk about his relationship in a YouTube message.
TORONTO — British diver Tom Daley has opened up about his new relationship and his decision to come out publicly via a YouTube video.
In an interview on The Jonathan Ross Show in London, the 19-year-old Olympian declined to identify his boyfriend — rumoured to be Oscar-winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, 39 — but admitted it was “love at first sight.”
According to UK newspaper The Sun, Daley and Black met this past spring at London’s Soho Hotel.
“I’d never felt like anything like it before,” Daley said Wednesday. “We were at a party and I hadn’t even spoken to him all night. I didn’t know what to do or if he was gay at first.”
READ MORE: Olympic diver Tom Daley reveals relationship with man
The diving champion said he made the first move, typing his phone number on the man’s mobile phone. He received a text message the following day.
“He makes me feel safe and happy,” Daley said. “Right now I couldn’t be happier.”
Daley added: “I’d never felt the feeling of love, it happened so quickly, I was completely overwhelmed by it to the point I can’t get him out of my head all the time. I’ve never had it before where I love someone and they love me just as much.”
Daley said coming out was “terrifying.” He said his sexuality was “like a dirty little secret” that left him feeling “alone and trapped.”
But, he added, “now that everyone knows, I have nothing to hide. I can carry on with my life as normal and be happy.”
The athlete said he knows he’s now a role model for young people dealing with their sexuality.
“Tell one person. Tell your story, how you feel,” he said. “It shouldn’t matter who I’m dating in this day and age. Be who you want to be.”
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