It would not be an Olympics without surprises. In Rio de Janeiro this month, the swimming pool water turned from blue to green. The United States women’s soccer team failed to advance to the semifinal round for the first time of any major tournament. As for LGBT athletes, the surprise story was not that they competed in Rio – there have always been gay Olympians – but that a straight journalist went on Grindr to find them.

And perhaps blew up his own career in the process.

According to the Human Rights Campaign, there were at least 41 out LGBT athletes in Rio – nearly double the number from four years ago in London. Outsports counted 49. Transgender model Lea T helped lead the Brazilian delegation into Maracana Stadium for the opening ceremonies; Brazilian rugby player Isadora Cerullo said "yes" to marriage after her girlfriend proposed to her in front of teammates, volunteers and the press, and NBC stepped in when announcer Chris Marlowe referred to Brazilian beach volleyball player Larissa Franca’s wife as her "husband." (No, Brazil was not the only country WITH out LGBT athletes. But theirs sure made headlines.)

Still, you want to hear about Grindr.

A few days after the Games began, the Daily Beast posted a story. The headline – "I Got Three Grindr Dates in an Hour in the Olympic Village" – was guaranteed to draw clicks.

In the story, writer Nico Hines described the ease with which he found "dates" on the legendary hookup site. He’s straight and married, but he posed as a gay man looking for sex. Then he gleefully described the men he’d met. He did not name names – but he just as well might have. Hines’ piece included enough detail that the men could be easily identified. Several live in places in which homosexuality is illegal.

Hines knew that. He even mentioned their "notoriously homophobic" countries, where they are forced to hide their sexuality.

Daily Beast editors knew what they were doing too. After a full day of online criticism, they simply removed identifying information and added a note, explaining they simply meant to publish a trend piece. No harm, no foul, in other words.

Finally – much too late – the Daily Beast removed the story. Of course, in cyberspace everything lives forever.

Michelangelo Signorile – host of a long-running LGBT radio show, and Queer Voices editor-at-large for the Huffington Post – acknowledged the argument that because the athletes were on a public website looking for sex, Hines did not really out them.

But, Signorile noted, the journalist actually went undercover to "lure" the Olympians in. Then he deceived them into talking about their desires and tastes. Signorile called that "far more personal and invasive" than simply identifying sexual orientation.

And, Signorile added, there was no journalistic purpose in revealing which Olympic athletes are closeted. One’s achievements in a pool, on a track or at beach volleyball has absolutely nothing to do with one’s preferences in the bedroom.

No one should make any assumptions about – or be concerned with – an athlete’s sexuality. That’s as true in the World OutGames as much as it is in the Summer Olympics.

In fact, despite its name, the World OutGames is all-inclusive. The quadrennial event – the next one is set for Miami in 2017, following previous competitions in Montreal, Copenhagen and Antwerp – is licensed by the Gay and Lesbian International Sport Association. But everyone is welcome to compete.

World OutGames is "a celebration of sport, culture and human rights." Many athletes come from countries where homosexuality remains illegal and hidden.

"The idea is for people to participate as who – not what – they are," says World OutGames CEO Ivan Cano. "We ask everyone to unite and have fun under the umbrella of true sportsmanship."

World OutGames athletes can participate anonymously, if they wish. The organization provides special credentials for those athletes, with a symbol indicating that they should not be photographed. "There is still the possibility of death threats in their home country," Cano explains. Sensitivity training is provided for journalists, staff members and volunteers.

Cano’s participation in LGBT sports date back to the 1990s, when he was a staffer at the Gay Games. Over the years, he says, "I’ve seen the opportunity for all walks of life, and all countries, to come together. It’s eye-opening."

But, Cano notes, being out is not a necessity. "You can create something safe and wonderful without carrying a torch."

When the Daily Beast brouhaha simmered down in Rio, it was clear that public opinion was on the side of privacy. The Olympic torch burns for everyone – gay, closeted, and on Grindr or not.