kevin rudd 'narrow-minded', says olympian matthew mitcham

Australia's only openly gay Olympic athlete has dismissed the Prime Minister as "narrow-minded" and "old-fashioned" for his opposition to gay marriage.

Matthew Mitcham, 20, is competing in two diving events in Beijing but is also making a splash for his comments criticising Kevin Rudd.  "Kevin Rudd's opinion of marriage as something that's only between a man and a woman is quite narrow-minded," Mitcham has told SX magazine.  "During the election campaign he was all about appearing young and cool, but his views on gay marriage make him look quite old-fashioned."

While the Federal Government has moved to change some laws covering same-sex couples, Mr Rudd admitted during the election campaign that he was opposed to gay marriage.  "Marriage ... is between a man and woman," he said during a radio interview last year. 
"You asked me a direct question, what do I believe in, what do I stand for, what's my party's policy, and I have to be up front with you and say that's it."

Appearing on ABC television earlier this year, Mr Rudd repeatedly tried to dodge questions on the issue by saying his personal view on gay marriage was not important, before eventually reiterating his opposition to it.

In his SX interview, Mitcham laughed off suggestions that he had been outed in a press report in June which made international headlines.  "It's not like I was straight before," he said. "Nothing really has changed."

- news.com.au