It showed him the corrosive power of homophobia in sports. The assault incident is still so uncomfortable for him to discuss, that years later Burley is deliberately vague about what specifically happened. I didn't want to go out drinking and pick up girls like a lot of the other guys did.' 'In my mind I wasn't like them, so there was a distance because I wasn't open about who I truly was. It was a difficult time for me because not only did I feel completely isolated, but that solidified the fact that I could never be out in that team environment. 'What was even worse about the whole thing was that I took the flack for it from a lot of the people within that community. 'I was assaulted once by a teammate and it was horrible,' Burley told Outsports.

The low point came when he was physically attacked by a teammate. Rosie Cossar is an out gay gymnast making change Canadian Olympic Committee's LGBT initiative