Hurley Haywood, legend of the race, says he's out gay to save lives

American racing legend Hurley Haywood told HuffPost that his gay position had given him the "incredible responsibility" to represent the LGBTQ community in a sport he considered a "last bastion of truly macho chauvinism". .

Haywood, five-time winner of the Rolex 24 at Daytona, spoke for the first time of his baduality during an interview with Autoweek in February 2018. A little over a year later, a new documentary traces the rise in Power of the pilot, now retired, in the 1970s and 1980s, even as his personal relationships remained secret for many fans.

HuffPost had a preview of "Hurley", which will air on Tuesday on the main streaming platforms, via the exclusive clip above. In this document, executive producer Patrick Dempsey explains why he thinks Haywood's days on the track would have been numbered if the pilot had chosen to go out while he was still racing.

Realized by Derek Dodge"Hurley" debuted at the 2018 Inside Out LGBT Film Festival after the publication of the autobiography of the driver, Hurley: from the beginning, which was co-written with Sean Cridland. Together, Haywood sees both projects as offering a "truly honest portrait" of his life and hopes that by sharing his journey, he can help simplify things for the next generation of drivers.

"I've been very lucky all my life," said Haywood, 70, at HuffPost. "I had a great childhood, a great career as a professional runner and I thought maybe it was time to give something back."

He told Autoweek that his decision to become gay last year was partly inspired by the meeting he had with a high school student who was interviewing him for a test. Haywood remembered at one point in this interview. The teenager had stated that he had been bullied for being gay, which had prompted the driver to start counseling him. Months later, Haywood said he received a phone call from the boy's mother, who said he helped save his son's life.

This experience made him want to detail his personal journey in the documentary and the book. "I thought," If my voice is strong enough to save a child, maybe I can save two, ten, or a hundred, "he told HuffPost.

Even though the world of driving does not seem particularly geared to LGBTQ, Haywood pointed out that he "has never been discriminated against" by other drivers, many of whom knew he was gay in the 70s.

"The only thing they looked at, is how long I have been on the choke," he said. "As long as I won races, people were in agreement with that. I let my right foot speak. "

An actor, racing driver, and pbadionate about his free time, he had previously worked with Dodge on a number of smaller social media projects. After coming to consider Haywood as a personal mentor, the star of "Gray's Anatomy" and "Bridget Jones" Baby told HuffPost that he was delighted to join "Hurley" as a executive producer and that he believed that the documentary message about the inclusion of LGBTQ was more important today than ever before. "

"We have people who are not tolerant, who make judgments, who take the scriptures [out of context] and reverse it in a way that has nothing to do with the teachings, "Dempsey said. "I hope, in a way, that we can bring this type of person to look at the world differently by calmly opening the debate on compbadion and acceptance."