Olympic swimmer Ian Thorpe publicly revealed that he is gay, and his father has broken the silence with his thoughts.

Catholic Leader Supports Michael Sam Despie Religious Roots?

The swimmer's father, Ken, spoke to Seven News on Monday where he reportedly said that he had no idea about his son's sexual orientation and was apparently shocked when he decided to announce it on public television.

"That was a shock because we never had any inclination that Ian was that way inclined," Ken said, published on Daily News.

Tom Daley Gay, Not Bisexual?

Despite not knowing about his son being gay, Ken made it clear that he loves his son and is completely on his side.

"God loves Ian and we love Ian unconditionally and we will support him," Ken said. He also mentioned that he recently spent some time with his son and he was "good to be around."

Thorpe revealed that he is gay in a live interview with Michael Parkinson when he was asked if his recent statements about having sexual experiences only with women were true. Thorpe said that that was true, then added a "but."

"I'm not straight," he added. "And this is something that only very recently- we're talking in the past two weeks- I've been comfortable telling the closest people around me exactly that."

The swimmer went on about his sexuality and how he feels okay talking about it.

"I'm comfortable saying I'm a gay man," Thorpe said, published on The Guardian. "And I don't want people to feel the same way I did. You can grow up, you can be comfortable and you can be gay."