On a less serious note, the gay-straight brother team of Dan and Jordan Pious won season 16 of the reality show Amazing Race. I will admit that I only watched bits and pieces of the show when I first heard about Dan and Jordan competing. The last time I watched was a few years back when two cute male models, Tyler Denk and James Branaman won Amazing Race 10. What is most moving to me is the relationship that this year's winners have with one another and how Dan supported Jordan when he came out as gay. I also hope that as more and more gay characters and contestants are on television and in other media forms, the sooner homophobia becomes a thing of the past. Congratulations to Dan and Jordan! Here are some highlights from The Advocate on the victorious brother team: *
Brotherly love may be priceless, but it was worth at least $1 million to gay and straight siblings Jordan and Dan Pious, the winners of season 16 of The Amazing Race. Rhode Island natives Jordan, 23, and Dan, 25, proved themselves formidable contenders in the round-the-world reality TV competition, and they made some controversial moves in the final leg, cutting into an airline ticket line in Shanghai, China, and then managing to get bumped up to first class so they beat their remaining two rival teams off the plane in San Francisco. (Both moves are allowed by the race’s rules.)
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The day after their victory episode was broadcast, this gay-straight alliance spoke with The Advocate about their winning strategies, their relationship with each other and with the race’s 10 other teams. . . and what it means to give the race its first openly gay winner since Reichen Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt, then a couple, in 2003.
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Growing up, I think my brother saw me becoming a gay boy, a gay man, and at the early stages tried to get me involved with sports, like “I don’t know if want you to be gay,” etc. I was like 7 or 8. When I came out, the first person I came out to in my family was my brother. I was 14-1/2 years old and I told him that I was gay, and his reaction was, “I will never love you any differently, you are my little brother, and you mean the world to me, and do you, do Jordan, and don’t change who you are,” and he has been the most supportive person in my life, and that was no exception.
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You are the first openly gay winner since Chip and Reichen. Do you feel like you’ve helped score some points for gay visibility? Jordan: I’ve received some fan messages and stuff like that from homosexual men and women who say I’m a positive role model for the gay community hearing that means the world to me. I have never felt that I don’t have opportunities because I’m gay, and I want everyone else to think and believe that as well. It’s just a part of who I am, it doesn’t define who I am, and you can do anything you put your mind to, so I hope people definitely take that away from this experience.
Brotherly love may be priceless, but it was worth at least $1 million to gay and straight siblings Jordan and Dan Pious, the winners of season 16 of The Amazing Race. Rhode Island natives Jordan, 23, and Dan, 25, proved themselves formidable contenders in the round-the-world reality TV competition, and they made some controversial moves in the final leg, cutting into an airline ticket line in Shanghai, China, and then managing to get bumped up to first class so they beat their remaining two rival teams off the plane in San Francisco. (Both moves are allowed by the race’s rules.)
*
The day after their victory episode was broadcast, this gay-straight alliance spoke with The Advocate about their winning strategies, their relationship with each other and with the race’s 10 other teams. . . and what it means to give the race its first openly gay winner since Reichen Lehmkuhl and Chip Arndt, then a couple, in 2003.
*
Growing up, I think my brother saw me becoming a gay boy, a gay man, and at the early stages tried to get me involved with sports, like “I don’t know if want you to be gay,” etc. I was like 7 or 8. When I came out, the first person I came out to in my family was my brother. I was 14-1/2 years old and I told him that I was gay, and his reaction was, “I will never love you any differently, you are my little brother, and you mean the world to me, and do you, do Jordan, and don’t change who you are,” and he has been the most supportive person in my life, and that was no exception.
*
You are the first openly gay winner since Chip and Reichen. Do you feel like you’ve helped score some points for gay visibility? Jordan: I’ve received some fan messages and stuff like that from homosexual men and women who say I’m a positive role model for the gay community hearing that means the world to me. I have never felt that I don’t have opportunities because I’m gay, and I want everyone else to think and believe that as well. It’s just a part of who I am, it doesn’t define who I am, and you can do anything you put your mind to, so I hope people definitely take that away from this experience.
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