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Sadly, one of the most bitter public statements on Weir came from one of our own.

In an interview with The Chicago Tribune, Rudi Galindo, a former U.S. champion and openly gay figure skater, complained that the media was not confronting Weir about the question of whether he is gay.

"He's drinking tea with his pinkie finger in the air, and he's so over the top and feminine, why is everybody asking him about his 'style' and not just ask him if he's gay?" Galindo said. "It's the funniest thing to watch."

Galindo claims he doesn't have respect for Weir because the three-time national champion was copying him. "We've built up this animosity," Galindo said.

It sounds more like sour grapes. To this writer, such gay-on-gay bad vibes are unfortunate and do not reflect well on Galindo. Additionally, his opinion seems out of touch with public sentiment on the matter. A poll asked Tribune readers, "Do you care if Weir is gay?" Of more than 4,000 respondents Thursday night, 92.5 percent had said no.

Happily, what started out as a rather nasty anti-Weir, anti-gay storm surge quickly subsided. Admittedly, a certain public frisson of losing-side disappointment and resentment still lingers, but most reports regarding Weir have begun to lighten up. Cooler, more tolerant talking heads are now prevailing.

On Thursday Dan Wetzel of Yahoo! Sports spoke out about Weir, “I am heterosexual, but feel quite comfortable saying I love the guy. He's colorful, fun, entertaining. We need more characters like him in sports.”

To his credit, Wetzel states how he hopes for a time when, “we will have gotten to the point where closets, if there are any, no longer matter. Although, judging by the Weir phenomenon, I think mainstream America is closer than ever.”

Even humorist/columnist Tony Kornheiser of The Washington Post--a straight “man's man” sportswriter if ever there was one--accepts Weir for who he is. Tony fondly refers to Weir as “my man” (even when verbally skewering him for being so off-the-wall).

Jim Buzinski, gay founder of the gay sports website Outsports.com, praises Weir to no end. "He's hysterical," said Buzinski. "He's so out there. Gay people love the guy the way they always love divas. He is a hero to the gay community.”

As to Weir's sexual orientation, Buzinski doesn't mince words. "If Johnny Weir isn't gay, then I'm not gay,” he states. It's Buzinski's firm belief that one would have to have the worst "gaydar" on earth not to sense which way Weir leans.

Jon Jackson, a former skater and Olympic-qualified judge, is the author of the book On Edge: Backroom Dealing, Cocktail Scheming, Triple Axels and How Top Skaters Get Screwed.

According to Jackson, Weir “can't [come out] because he will deal with repercussions from judges. I've seen it," Jackson said Thursday in an AP interview, "and it goes beyond (prejudice) from straight judges. (It includes) gay male judges who have their own sexual identity threatened if a gay skater does something feminine."

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