Former Olympic diver Matthew Mitcham got candid on this week’s episode of SAS Australia, where he admitted to lying to his husband.
In the newest episode of the reality show where celebrities test their physical and psychological strength, the 35-year-old diver opened up about his relationship with husband Luke Rutherford during a “setting fire to shame” challenge.
He first opened up about still having a hard time being honest with his husband even though he’s now clean and sober.
“I am so ashamed of the immense pain I caused someone for 11 years and who stayed with me throughout my addiction,” Mitcham said, according to Queerty. “And even though I have been clean and sober for several years and that has been one of his absolute deciding factors, I still struggle to be completely honest with my husband.”
At the 2008 Beijing Games, Mitcham became the first openly gay man to win an Olympic gold medal, but while that may have prepared him for the grueling physical tests on the show, it may not have prepared him to be as vulnerable as he was required to be.
When asked what the biggest lie he’s told recently, Mitcham revealed that he still lies to his husband about sexual partners even though they have an “understanding” when it comes to having sex with people outside of their marriage.
“I haven’t been the best husband,” he admitted, nearly in tears. “I’ve definitely caused a lot of pain and I still have a lot of shame for the lies and deception in my relationship.”
He continued, “I let my own insecurities, fears, and trust issues be bigger than a promise I made to him. And in doing so, I caused so much harm and serious damage to the relationship.”
In what felt like a moment of true honesty, Mitcham also admitted that he’s ashamed he “hurt the people who matter most to me because honesty is not one of my core values and I’m a liar.”
When SAS Australia's chief instructor Ant Middleton asked Mitcham if he might be a “compulsive liar,” he answered, “Maybe, yeah that would be a very shameful thing for me to admit.”
On top of starring in the grueling reality series, Mitcham also recently made his London stage debut with Strangers In Between and both he and Rutherford have OnlyFans accounts. His is pretty tame, while his husband’s features more explicit acts performed with other OF creators.