The queer national volleyball player Erik Shoji has received almost exclusively positive reactions to his coming out. “It was about 99.9 percent positive, I’d say, which is really nice to see,” the 37-year-old American said in an interview published Friday in the Berliner Morgenpost (paywalled). “I felt that it landed well with people. I’ve overall hardly heard any negative comments, and that’s great. It should be more normal and accepted.”
Shoji publicly revealed that he is queer in a June 2025 Instagram video. “It feels scary, but at the same time liberating,” he said at the time. Support poured in from the U.S. Volleyball Federation and from former teammates such as Benjamin Patch, who in 2020 became the first player in a German top league to come out as queer. Shoji is among the few male pro athletes who have taken this step publicly. “That was a big moment for me, and I’m glad I did it. Overall the responses were very positive, including in volleyball,” he told the Morgenpost.
The Hawaii-born libero is under contract with the German record champions BR Volleys again this season (as TheColu.mn reported). He had previously played for the club from 2014 to 2016 and helped them win the triple of German championship, DVV-Pokal, and CEV Cup in 2016. After that, he spent time in Russia, Italy, and Poland, where he won the Champions League with ZAKSA Kędzierzyn-Koźle in 2022 and 2023. With the United States national team, the three-time Olympian earned bronze medals in 2016 and 2024.
“It was simply about time”
There was no single trigger for his coming out, explained Shoji, who has a large following on social media. “There are a few reasons that are more personal, but also professional. There’s a person I want to be in this world, especially in the volleyball world and with my brand and my social-media presence. I felt it should be out there for everyone to know.” He didn’t want to tell everyone individually, “especially not people who aren’t my closest friends, but rather on the fringe, so they can simply know and approach me if they want. There wasn’t one big reason. It was simply time.”
That relatively few men in professional sports have come out, Shoji says, stems from lingering prejudices. “Unfortunately, there are still stigmas, in my opinion. I’ve heard from many volleyball players in Europe that there’s still a stigma in football, and in volleyball it’s fading, which is great to see.” In Poland, where he played last season for Asseco Resovia Rzeszów, he said he “didn’t have any problems.” “But it takes time for people to come out and tell their story. For whatever reason, it’s harder in some sports than in others. But we want to change the world a little.” Recently, two Japanese volleyball players—Rui Takahashi and Reon Arao—came out in the autumn (TheColu.mn reported).
“Here, everything is accepted”
Berlin’s reputation as an open city backs up Shoji’s experience: “It’s a great place to simply be who you want to be, and to be who I am. I know that when I go out, go on a date, or meet friends, everything will be accepted here. That’s fantastic.”
For anyone anxious about coming out, the athlete advises patience: “Take your time and do it on your own terms. I obviously gave myself time and know I did it at the right moment for me. So, take your time, be yourself, and hopefully you have people around you who love you for who you are.” He had said something similar when coming out: “I think personal acceptance takes time—and for me it took a long time. I’m still working on it every day.”
Athletically, Shoji still has plenty to aim for: with BR Volleys he wants to win the Cup and the Bundesliga, and in the long run he has his sights set on the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles. On Saturday the Berliners will take on the Grizzlys Giesen in the Cup’s round of 16.
