Field hockey player Nico Keenan is at his second Olympic Games but this time around, he’s in the tricky position of being a reserve player. In Tokyo three years ago, he was a key part of the Argentina team that reached the quarterfinals. In Paris, he had to watch from the stands as his country lost to Australia and drew to India in Group B. However, on Tuesday, he got the call, coming into the squad for their 2-0 win over New Zealand. He started on the bench but was substituted on in the second half. Keenan is also one of over 190 out LGBTQ athletes in Paris. Also in the city for the Games is his boyfriend, Rob Jetten, who is the former Deputy Prime Minister of the Netherlands.
Yes, you read that right. This is a rare power couple that combines elite sporting and political talents. The two men met in The Hague, where since 2017 Keenan has played for top-flight professional club HC Klein Zwitserland and Jetten has sat in the Dutch parliament. Keenan was born in Buenos Aires but has lived in Europe since he was a child. His father Patricio also played hockey for Argentina and then moved into coaching. At the Tokyo Olympics, he scored an extraordinary winner in a group-stage match against the hosts. It would later be voted by fans as the Best Goal of 2021 in the sport.
