Two weeks into her freshman year Allyson Taylor, a member of the University of Michigan's synchronized skating team, went to an 18+ club in Ann Arbor. Fridays were designated as Pride Night, and she posted the event on her Snapchat story.
Seconds later, an upperclassman teammate messaged her, asking if she could join.
"I didn't know her very well, but we immediately made plans to go to a gay club together," Taylor said. "It's always been a very accepting environment. I don't think my experience would have changed if I were straight or closeted."
While 2021 graduate Taylor has felt confident in her bisexuality since high school, Joel Palladino — who figure skated with Northeastern University, then Boston University as a graduate student — said his teammates helped him come out as gay.
Allyson Taylor
"I was 22 or 23 and I felt comfortable in my surroundings as far as my friends and family," Palladino said. "I owe a lot of that to the BU skating team. I knew my teammates were going to support me."
That closeness and inclusivity is at the core of successful skating programs like the University of Michigan and Boston University. Several clubs and varsity teams across the county strive for similar relationship-driven cultures — Taylor describes her teammates as "a very welcoming, very motivated group of people" — but that doesn't mean everyone prioritizes acceptance. Palladino, who finished his master's degree in 2015, still observes instances of hate and ignorance.
"I think the skating community is making strides, but there's still major work that needs to be done in terms of reaching acceptance," Palladino said.
According to Palladino, skating programs at universities are the perfect place to start.
"Whether it be our sexuality, whether it be our careers, whether it be our relationships, this is the age where people are trying to find themselves," he said. "You are going to avoid a lot of headaches and frustrations and heartbreaks if you're able to be yourself."
Thinking of strategies to care for future LGBTQ+ collegiate skaters, Palladino suggested a two-pronged approach: education and visibility.
Joel Palladino
Palladino and Taylor both noted Team USA skaters' transparency about their sexualities is invaluable to promote the value and the essentialness of acceptance across the sport. While competing in different disciplines in college, both said they craved role models like Amber Glenn, Adam Rippon and Timothy LeDuc — who all came out in amidst of competitive careers — while they were growing up.
"I think seeing a role model you can identify with really helps young children be themselves," Palladino said. "Everyone faces challenges in their lives but knowing that other people like you are out there and have achieved success through their struggles is so comforting."
In a separate interview, Taylor sang a similar, hopeful tune.
"Historically, skating is a heteronormative sport," Taylor said. "You always knew gay skaters were out there, but it wasn't projected as part of their identity. The athletes who are coming out now are promoting inclusivity and encouraging skaters and fans to reconsider their boundaries."
Palladino thinks U.S. Figure Skating's strengthening support of the LGTBQ+ community plays a role in supporting collegiate athletes from all backgrounds. He pointed out that regardless of how the rest of the world has accepted them, there have always been elite diverse figure skaters.
"Following the heightened hate crimes against Asian Americans in the last year, so many skaters expressed support for the Asian American community," he said. "Highlighting different communities is important because it helps us remember so many champions and Team USA athletes have been gay or Asian or Black."
Allyson Taylor
Support, acceptance and inclusivity are pillars of collegiate skating, as both Palladino and Taylor attest. It fosters relationships, builds confidence and maybe even parlays into athletic success.
Taylor said her teammates always sent her a Megan Rapinoe quote before competitions. During the World Cup tournament in 2019, the infamous soccer player said, "You can't win a championship without gays on your team. It's never been done before, ever. That's science."
And perhaps it is. Both the teams from the University of Michigan and Boston University are back-to-back-to-back champions at the U.S. Synchronized Skating Championships and the Intercollegiate National Final, respectively.
Medals and trophies aside, both collegiate skating alumni said friendships were the most valuable part of their skating careers.
"Throughout my career at the University of Michigan, my teammates went from being my role models to my best friends," Taylor said. "And as a senior, I helped mentor the underclassmen. Those relationships assured me there are people out there who are going to be accepting of me, regardless of my sexuality."
Indeed, the friendships are lifelong, said Palladino.
"It's fabulous to win and skate your best, but at the end of the day, I've been removed from collegiate skating since 2015, and my friends then are still my friends," Palladino said.
