The queer ice hockey romance «Heated Rivalry» is now considered a phenomenon. In less than eight weeks, the HBO series has thrilled millions of viewers and now even boasts the second-highest rating of any television episode of all time on IMDb.
The enormous success catapulted the main actors Hudson Williams (24) and Connor Storrie (25) to superstar status. The series has also won over prominent fans such as Pedro Pascal (50), Andy Cohen (57) and Oprah Winfrey (71).
Though, «Heated Rivalry» especially touched one viewer who comes from the ice hockey world himself: Jesse Kortuem. The former amateur player explained this week that it inspired him to come out publicly as gay, after having shared his sexuality for years only within his closest family and friends.
«Inside, I was the boy from Minnesota who was hiding»
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In a statement published on Tuesday in the magazine «Out», jesse describes how he grew up as one of four brothers in a hockey-dominated family in Minnesota. He felt burdened early on by the feeling of being different and not being able to fully identify with his surroundings. The fear that his identity and his career in ice hockey were not compatible was particularly great.
Emotional Response to a Public Disclosure
The text describes a positive emotional response on social media to a public disclosure, likely concerning a person’s identity. Users expressed support and gratitude, with comments like “Thank you for sharing this. This will inspire more people!” and “I am proud of you, king.” The article also includes informational resources for the LGBTQI community in Switzerland. The comment section has been disabled.
The central focus is on an unnamed individual who made a public disclosure, eliciting a strong positive reaction. Details about this person are not provided in the text.
* InterAction: A Swiss institution providing advice and information for intersex individuals (https://www.inter-action-suisse.ch/de/home).
* Lilli.ch: A Swiss website offering information and a directory of counseling services for the LGBTQI community (https://www.lilli.ch/lgbtq_community).
* 20 Minuten: The news outlet publishing the article.
* Felipe Cordova: The author of the article, a 2025 intern at 20 Minuten covering national and international celebrities.
Verification & current Status (as of 2026/01/16 23:33:51)
The provided text itself is a report about a social media reaction. Direct verification of the initial disclosure that prompted the reaction is not possible without further information (e.g., a link to the original post). However, the links to InterAction and Lilli.ch were checked and are currently active and lead to the described resources.
A search for recent news related to prominent LGBTQI+ disclosures in Switzerland did not reveal any breaking news events directly linked to this article as of the current date. The information regarding Felipe Cordova’s role at 20 Minuten is consistent with their online author profile.
The disabling of the comment section is a common practice for news articles dealing with sensitive topics to manage perhaps harmful or abusive interactions.
