{"id":42433,"date":"2016-08-06T10:20:32","date_gmt":"2016-08-06T14:20:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/"},"modified":"2016-08-06T10:20:32","modified_gmt":"2016-08-06T14:20:32","slug":"meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/","title":{"rendered":"Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><b>Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies<\/b><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/2_taufatofua.jpeg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/2_taufatofua.jpeg?resize=740%2C412\" alt=\"Pita Taufatofua\" srcset=\"http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/2_taufatofua.jpeg?w=1200 1200w, http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/2_taufatofua.jpeg?resize=300%2C167 300w, http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/2_taufatofua.jpeg?resize=768%2C428 768w, http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/2_taufatofua.jpeg?resize=1024%2C570 1024w, http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/2_taufatofua.jpeg?resize=150%2C84 150w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Tongan flagbearer Pita Taufatofua, a taekwondo athlete, broke the internet when he entered the stadium in Rio leading his country&rsquo;s contingent, greased up and smiling broadly.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/i1.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/taufatofua.jpeg\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/i1.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/taufatofua.jpeg?resize=740%2C464\" alt=\"pita taufatofua\" srcset=\"http:\/\/i1.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/taufatofua.jpeg?w=1200 1200w, http:\/\/i1.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/taufatofua.jpeg?resize=300%2C188 300w, http:\/\/i1.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/taufatofua.jpeg?resize=768%2C481 768w, http:\/\/i1.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/taufatofua.jpeg?resize=1024%2C642 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Commentating for NBC Sports, Meredith Vieira nearly fell off her chair when Taufatofua entered.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Oh, Look at Tonga,&rdquo; she explained. &ldquo;<em>Wow<\/em>, look at Tonga!&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Said Hoda Kotb, &ldquo;Slow that down! We&rsquo;ll just <a title=\"\" class=\"aalmanual\" target=\"_blank\"   href=\"https:\/\/chaturbate.com\/in\/?tour=grq0&#38;campaign=hl4zp&#38;track=gfcsb\">live<\/a> here for a minute.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;He just became a sensation in Brazil. I can tell you that.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BIwLcE9hufd\/?taken-by=juliuspoole\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/BIwLcE9hufd\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.wsj.com\/articles\/who-is-tongas-flag-bearer-1470450932\" target=\"_blank\">The WSJ reports<\/a>:<\/p>\n<p>He is expected to compete in the <a title=\"\" class=\"aalmanual\" target=\"_blank\"   href=\"https:\/\/chaturbate.com\/in\/?tour=R2Xc&#38;campaign=hl4zp&#38;track=gfcsb\">men<\/a>&rsquo;s 80 kg division of taekwondo on Friday, Aug. 19. He appeared to be confident in his path as long as five years ago when Taufatofua visited a taekwondo museum in South Korea. He signed the guestbook: &ldquo;Pita Taufatofua. Taekwondo Tonga. Future Olympian.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Taufatofua has modeling experience under his belt already, including showcasing wedding wear for Australian events company Turning Paige. Company owner Kira Keam said the Tongan was not paid to don formalwear for the shoot, which was designed to demonstrate the work of other designers to potential clients.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.towleroad.com\/2016\/08\/rio-2016\/\" target=\"_blank\">In related news<\/a>:<\/p>\n<p>There are a record 44 out LGBTI athletes who will compete in Rio, as well as three coaches, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.outsports.com\/2016\/7\/11\/12133594\/rio-olympics-teams-2016-gay-lgbt-athletes-record\">according to Outsports.com.&nbsp;<\/a>(Four years ago in London, there were only 23.) There is also one married <a title=\"\" class=\"aalmanual\" target=\"_blank\"   href=\"https:\/\/www.flirt4free.com\/live\/girls\/couples\/?mp_code=akftr\">couple<\/a>, Helen Richardson-Walsh and Kate Richardson-Walsh, British field hockey players, as well as 11 publicly out <a title=\"\" class=\"aalmanual\" target=\"_blank\"   href=\"https:\/\/chaturbate.com\/in\/?tour=R2Xc&#38;campaign=hl4zp&#38;track=gfcsb\">male<\/a> athletes &mdash; another record &mdash; though&nbsp;<a href=\"http:\/\/www.outsports.com\/2016\/8\/1\/12209162\/american-male-gay-athletes-rio-olympics\">none are from the U.S<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Yet.<\/p>\n<p>The numbers keep growing. A list of openly LGBTI athletes compiled by <a href=\"http:\/\/outsports.com\" class=\"autohyperlink\">outsports.com<\/a>&nbsp;on July 11 had 27 names. Today, 42 athletes are out and proud.&nbsp;Just yesterday, NBA star Elena Delle Donne publicly came out on an interview with <em><a href=\"http:\/\/www.vogue.com\/13463188\/elena-delle-donne-rio-summer-olympics-us-womens-basketball-team\/\">Vogue<\/a>&nbsp;&mdash;&nbsp;<\/em>and that was huge: one of the world&rsquo;s hottest basketball players right now, Donne was recently voted Most Valuable Player by the NBA. &ldquo;She is a once-in-a generation type of player,&rdquo; NBA deputy commissioner Mark Tatum told&nbsp;<em>Vogue.&nbsp;<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Here are some more photos of Taufatofua <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/pita_tofua\/\" target=\"_blank\">from his Instagram<\/a> account:<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/7OpVHMqE1Y\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/7OpVHMqE1Y\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BHLRwIEg6hI\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/BHLRwIEg6hI\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BGDYkh-KE8h\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/BGDYkh-KE8h\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BFhlR-TqE15\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/BFhlR-TqE15\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BBn_k74qE5O\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/BBn_k74qE5O\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BBB3m_tKExO\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/BBB3m_tKExO\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BA6JbBGqE3Y\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/BA6JbBGqE3Y\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BAEKvxGKE7v\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/BAEKvxGKE7v\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/68PMs2qE-y\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/68PMs2qE-y\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/w71KkMqE4T\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/w71KkMqE4T\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/wR8cvNqE2R\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/wR8cvNqE2R\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/wKIUIsKE1V\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/wKIUIsKE1V\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/wEmplbKExV\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/wEmplbKExV\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/ul1MI9KE4Q\/?taken-by=pita_tofua\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/ul1MI9KE4Q\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/p\/BIuSqp1gPik\/\" title=\"View on Instagram\" target=\"_blank\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/instagr.am\/p\/BIuSqp1gPik\/media\/?size=l\" alt=\"Instagram Photo\"><\/a><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Oh, we didn&rsquo;t miss it!<\/p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/www.towleroad.com\/2016\/08\/pita-taufatofua\/\">Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio&rsquo;s Opening Ceremonies<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http:\/\/www.towleroad.com\/\">Towleroad<\/a>.<\/p>\n<div>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.towleroad.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?a=7k56Ypg4PWc:XjTjz0aED9k:qj6IDK7rITs\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?d=qj6IDK7rITs\" border=\"0\"><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.towleroad.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?a=7k56Ypg4PWc:XjTjz0aED9k:I9og5sOYxJI\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?d=I9og5sOYxJI\" border=\"0\"><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.towleroad.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?a=7k56Ypg4PWc:XjTjz0aED9k:yIl2AUoC8zA\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?d=yIl2AUoC8zA\" border=\"0\"><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.towleroad.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?a=7k56Ypg4PWc:XjTjz0aED9k:gIN9vFwOqvQ\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?i=7k56Ypg4PWc:XjTjz0aED9k:gIN9vFwOqvQ\" border=\"0\"><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.towleroad.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?a=7k56Ypg4PWc:XjTjz0aED9k:cGdyc7Q-1BI\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?d=cGdyc7Q-1BI\" border=\"0\"><\/a> <a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.towleroad.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?a=7k56Ypg4PWc:XjTjz0aED9k:YwkR-u9nhCs\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~ff\/towleroad\/feed?d=YwkR-u9nhCs\" border=\"0\"><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/~r\/towleroad\/feed\/~4\/7k56Ypg4PWc\" height=\"1\" width=\"1\" alt=\"\"><br \/>\n<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/feeds.towleroad.com\/~r\/towleroad\/feed\/~3\/7k56Ypg4PWc\/\" class=\"autohyperlink\">feeds.towleroad.com\/~r\/towleroad\/feed\/~3\/7k56Ypg4PWc\/<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies Tongan flagbearer Pita Taufatofua, a taekwondo athlete, broke the internet when he entered the stadium in Rio leading his country&rsquo;s contingent, greased up and smiling broadly. Commentating for NBC Sports, Meredith Vieira nearly fell off her chair when Taufatofua entered. &ldquo;Oh, Look at Tonga,&rdquo; &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2466,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[107],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42433","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies - GAYFRIENDSCHAT.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies - GAYFRIENDSCHAT.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies Tongan flagbearer Pita Taufatofua, a taekwondo athlete, broke the internet when he entered the stadium in Rio leading his country&rsquo;s contingent, greased up and smiling broadly. Commentating for NBC Sports, Meredith Vieira nearly fell off her chair when Taufatofua entered. &ldquo;Oh, Look at Tonga,&rdquo; &hellip; Continue reading Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies &rarr;\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"GAYFRIENDSCHAT.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-08-06T14:20:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/2_taufatofua.jpeg?resize=740%2C412\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"GayFriendschat.com\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@gayfriendschat\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@gayfriendschat\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"GayFriendschat.com\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"GayFriendschat.com\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/#\/schema\/person\/181913201d50f65b9bba7437f822a17f\"},\"headline\":\"Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-08-06T14:20:32+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/\"},\"wordCount\":432,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.towleroad.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/08\/2_taufatofua.jpeg?resize=740%2C412\",\"articleSection\":[\"NEWS\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.gayfriendschat.com\/socialblog\/meet-pita-taufatofua-the-tonga-flagbearer-who-stole-rios-opening-ceremonies\/\",\"name\":\"Meet Pita Taufatofua, the Tonga Flagbearer Who Stole Rio\u2019s Opening Ceremonies - 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