Jogens is a Dutch foreign language film that follows the story of a 15 year-old boy training with his school's track team during the summer.
Unknown to everyone in his town he lives with the secret of being gay.
The film touches on many issues including identity formation, personal development during adolescence and the difficulties of being openly gay in sport.
Synopsis
Jogens follows the story of Sieger, a 15-year old boy who is a promising running talent in his small Dutch town. He looks to spend his entire summer training with his team.
But things take a sideways turn when Sieger meets someone new on the team named Marc. The two hit it off and discover that they have a lot in common. Soon enough the two become friends and spend more time with one another away from the track.
As time goes on the two begin developing feelings for one another. Ultimately, others around the town begin to speculate about the two 'close friends'. Which leads a serious familial conflict.
The remainder of the film follows Sieger as he tries to understand who he is and determine what is truly important to him in the face of scrutiny by those around him.
Important Themes
Homosexuality in sport is still a very disputed issue in the world of athletics. Jongens bases the entire film on this point.
Although homosexuality has widely become accepted across the world over the years, this breakthrough has yet to make it into the world of sport.
Being a gay athlete in professional sports is something which brings a tumultuous amount of animosity and attention to one's self.
In the past athletes have been banned, blocked, traded, threatened or even have had to resign from their professional positions simply for being gay. (The Michael Sam story illustrates this well). So it's no wonder that many who may be gay do not choose to tell people or be open about their lifestyles away from the arena.
Whether athletes participate in the NCAA, NFL, NHL, English Premiere League or even the Olympics; being an openly gay athlete is still very taboo.
Let's take the English Premiere League for example. It is estimated that there are approximately 4,000 footballers in the UK but there are no gay openly gay players. Within the league's history there have only been three openly gay athletes:
1) Justin Fashanu who enjoyed an almost 20 year career in the English Championship before committing suicide at the age of 37
2) Carl Hoefkens who played for Stoke City and West Brom from 2005 - 2009
3) Robbie Rogers who came out as gay in 2013 and quickly retired afterwords due to upheaval from media and fans.
The aforementioned Hoefkens once stated in an interview penned by The Independent:
“I played alongside three gay footballers, including one who was a genuinely big name. They did not hide who they were in the dressing-room.”
Alluding to the fear that being outed to the public can ruin one's career.
Conclusion
All in all Jongens tells a story of a boy trying to come to terms with his own identity and what change it brings to his life at home as well as on the track.
The film showcases the stigma associated with athletes who struggle with their identities and how 'coming out' becomes a struggle in itself.
Jongens quite rightly shows how homophobia rears it's ugly face in sport and how it affects how people live their lives.
