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Orlando Cruz, first openly gay professional boxer, marries partner

Orlando Cruz, first openly gay professional boxer, marries partner

NEW YORK — Openly gay professional boxer Orlando Cruz married his partner, José Manuel Colón, in a ceremony in New York’s Central Park on Saturday.

The ceremony was officiated by New York City Council member Melissa Mark-Viverito and the witnesses were Pedro Julio Serrano of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force and Shirley Casiano, reports the Washington Blade.

Orlando Cruz (second from left) and Jose Manuel (center).
Via: Orlando Cruz, Facebook
Orlando Cruz (second from left) and Jose Manuel (center).

“Giving thanks to my heavenly father for one more day of life and with my husband José Manuel in it,” Cruz wrote on his Facebook page on Sunday.

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Cruz, 31, announced his sexual orientation in October 2012, becoming the first pro boxer to come out as openly gay while still competing.

“I have and will always be a proud Puerto Rican. I have always been and always will be a proud gay man,” he said at the time.

He was among the first class of inductees into the National Gay and Lesbian Sports Hall of Fame on August 2, 2013.

Cruz announced his engagement to Manuel in August.

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