Bruce Jenner has revealed that he identifies as a woman - his 'true self' and a childhood dream - in an explosive ABC interview with Diane Sawyer.
The 65-year-old Olympic gold medalist and reality TV star sparked rumors about his gender identity last year after visibly altering his appearance.
He confirmed that he is reinventing himself physically in a bid to transition from male to female in the highly-anticipated, intimate sit-down.
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| Daughters of Bruce - Kylie & Kendall Jenner |
Speaking in front of millions of viewers, including Kim Kardashian and her family, Bruce tearfully revealed: 'For all intents and purposes, I am a woman.
'My brain is much more female than it is male. That's what my soul is. Bruce lives a lie. She is not a lie.' He firmly added: 'I can't do it anymore.'
During the interview, Bruce also admitted that he has been regularly taking female hormones - and plans to completely transform into a woman.
But he said he was still attracted to females. 'I was never attracted to the guys,' he told Diane, explaining how he has always enjoyed a good sex life.
Jenner added: 'I am not gay.I am, as far as I know, heterosexual. As far as I know, I've never been with a guy. I've always been married, raising kids.'
And he denied that his revelations were for publicity purposes. Instead, he made them due to his inability to continue to 'pull the curtain', he said.
Indeed, hiding his identity was so painful for Bruce that it once left him contemplating suicide to escape from the never-ending scrutiny, he revealed.
Many viewers and celebrities were taking to social media last night to congratulate Bruce on making a giant leap for the transgender community. Lady Gaga tweeted: '#BruceJennerABC Now that is bravery', before telling her fans to 'empower people like Bruce' globally by 'being loving & not mean'.
Meanwhile, Bruce's 17-year-old daughter, Kylie Jenner, tweeted an emotional message to her father. 'Understandingly, this has been very hard for me. You will hear what I have to say when I'm ready to but this isn't about me. I'm so proud of you, Dad. You are so brave. My beautiful Hero,' she wrote.
However, other users expressed concern that Bruce's TV appearance has simply made transgenderism into a spectacle.
He added: 'My whole life has been getting me ready for this. I'm really excited about the future, about what good I could do in the world. It's going to be an emotional rollercoaster, but somehow I'm gonna get through it... I feel like I’m going to be OK. 2015 is going to be quite a ride... Quite a ride.'
But despite his self-proclaimed 'female soul', Bruce said he does not describe himself as a woman stuck in a man's body. 'I'm a person and that's who I am,' he said. 'I'm not stuck in anyone's body. It's just me. It's who I am.' He added that last night's interview would be his last one as Bruce, as a 'he'.
And when asked if he dreams as a woman, he said he 'always' has done. Indeed, Bruce was only eight or nine years old when he first put on one of his mother's dresses while she was out of the house. He then carefully placed the feminine item back in the exact same spot to avoid getting caught.
'At the time, I didn’t know why I was doing it besides it just made me feel good,' he told Diane. He went on to tell her about a time, as an adult, that he was greeted by a storm of paparazzi after a doctor's appointment to get a trachial shave. 'That night I thought, 'Oh, it's, like, over,' he said.
'I was walking up and down this hall right here, back and forth, back and forth all night long. Heart's pounding. And I thought, wouldn't the easiest thing to be right now, and I could see where people get to that - is go in the room, get a gun. Boom. You know? Pain's over. Done. Go to a better place.
'And I thought, "nah, I cant do something like that". I mean, I wanna know how this story ends.'
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