Aidan Faminoff spends his days in the pool and his nights on stage. The NCAA champion diver was a standout at Florida State University, where he earned numerous awards and accolades, including a bronze medal at the ACC Championships and first All-ACC honors.
But after graduating in 2020, there was a void in Faminoff’s life. For 17 years, he received his validation on the board, basking in the adulation of fans and thriving during competition. With his competitive diving career over, he was searching for a new purpose.
That’s when Hazel entered the picture.
A self-described “girl next door” who likes to put on a show and “buck” on stage (more on that later), Hazel is a rising star in the Vancouver drag scene. She regales audiences with her seductive personality and gorgeous lewks. This girl can werk, b****!
With a slew of performances on tap for Vancouver Pride next month, Hazel is only going to receive more exposure–and she’s ready for her star turn. Meanwhile, Faminoff, the artist behind Hazel, may be making his return to the pool, reinvigorated with a recent fourth place finish in his first meet in years. The 2024 Gay Games, which are slated to take place in Hong Kong, are in his sights.
Queerty recently caught up with Faminoff (and Hazel) to chat about the allure of drag, the power of performing and the satisfaction of being a little naughty. Here’s what they both had to say…
QUEERTY: You recently got back on the board and competed for the first time since college. How did you enjoy the experience?
FAMINOFF: My old teammates from my club team in Victoria, they were like, ‘Oh, we’re getting back on the board, and we’re all going to compete at provincials.’ And I was like, ‘Oh, is that what’s happening?’ Then I literally had my head coach and assistant head coach reach out to me and go, ‘You’re competing.’
I got fourth. I was pissed! Ten points from the podium! I was like, ‘I don’t want no participation trophy. I wanted to medal.’
Did it give you the itch to get back into diving?
After that, because I only trained for a solid hour, I would. There’s also the Gay Games. I was looking into that, and I have a bunch of friends who do it for tennis, and then I was like, ‘diving might be fun.’ I believe the next one is 2024. So, yeah, if my schedule aligns with it, I think I would do it. It would be a lot of fun.
Being back on the board and experiencing that feeling, you don’t understand it unless you’ve done the sport. Getting the cheers and everything just gave me that instant rush and ‘Ohh…that feeling that you miss and flying through the air.’ It’s hard to describe. It’s like you’re flying, and then in one second you’ve got to know where you’re at, or you’re going to eat it!
What attracted you to drag?
I’ve just always been fascinated with drag. I came out in college, and went to my first gay bar there. Then in Vancouver, I came back for the summer, and saw drag queens and was like, ‘That’s so interesting.’ I would just start lip-syncing their songs on stage and was just like, ‘Agh, I really want to be up there.’ But then it wasn’t until my friend who I met on Tinder—I saw they were a drag queen and I swiped right—we matched and I immediately sent them a message and was like, ‘We’re becoming best friends.’ They put me in drag for the first time, and I threw a house party in Florida, and literally invited all athletes and my gay friends. I got put in drag, and I performed in this house. I got two other drag queens to come as well, and we put on a show there. That was literally the first time I ever was in drag and got to experience that feeling, and it was wild!
Were you good?
Oh, I ate! It was cool. I did that one time, and then COVID happened, I got sent back to Canada and finished my degree out here on the farm. Then I worked for a company that put on drag shows here. I was behind stage–I was stage mom. Then I would just stand there and be like, ‘I could eat this right now. I should be on stage, because I could do a lot more.’ No shade to the other queens. They did well. But I did better!
When I got into Vancouver and started doing drag, I was like, ‘Oh, I’m just gonna try it out.’ But the one reason I think it stuck with me is, because the passion that I have for diving, that ‘oh s***’ feeling I would get when I would step onto that board and walk down and dive, right when I stepped on the stage for the first time, I got that exact feeling. I had been missing that feeling, and waiting to find it at my next thing in life. I dove for 17 years. That was my whole entire life. Then you retire, and you’re looking for the next thing to fill that void. Then you put on a lace front, you put on a little outfit, and then bam, girl! You’ve got it!
Tell us about Hazel. Who is she?
I would say, she’s the girl next door who loves to have a great time, but she will also put on a show and ‘buck’ on stage. And by ‘buck,’ I mean she’ll do tricks, stunts, all of that. I’m there more for the audience to have a good time.
I also have a good time, because we feed off the audience reaction, and to go off that, the more they give us, the more I will do. So I love to look good, I love to wear human hair, I love to whip that fair. And I love to look like a little, itty bitty thing on stage.
What are some of your favorite things to do, outside of diving and drag?
Mostly, it’s just hang out with my friends. I met this great group of people here. All I can say is, they’re like my chosen family. When I’m not diving or doing drag, I’m with one of the five. We call ourselves ‘Five by Five,’ it’s ridiculous. We’re all so creative, we’ve done events together. We do yoga events together where my best friend, he’s a certified yoga teacher. We throw these house music, mixed with yoga vibe-type parties. You’re going through the flow, but you’re also getting the beats. My friend is the DJ behind that. Then we have another drag queen. We create magic, and we’re going to just keep creating magic. We’re putting our talents together to create safe spaces for queer people. We call it ‘Sunday Service.’
What are you bopping to right now?
Dua Lipa is my go-time girl. She’s the one. But now, I’m so into deep techno and house music. That’s my next genre. Gospel house, just discovered that the other day. It’s people singing their hearts out, and then in the background it’s like, ‘boom, boom, boom,’ and it’s just amazing.
How do you stay in shape?
I workout all the time. I do Barry’s, I got to the gym, coaching. In drag, I’m performing non-stop, right? So that’s cardio. Thank God I conditioned myself in college, girl, because right now, I would be struggling. I literally say this on the microphone after, I’m like, ‘God, I need to work on my cardio.’ But that’s how you know. When a queen goes off and they can’t speak or breath after their number, unless it’s a ballet, and then that gives in its own way.
Are you dating anybody?
Right now, I am single and ready to mingle; so please, come my way…anyone! I’m also just really focused on my craft. I turned 25 in February, so I’m just trying to figure out what’s next. So I’m really focused on my craft and what I want to be, but if someone wants to join me along for the ride, let’s go!
What are you most looking forward to this summer?
I’m so excited for Vancouver Pride, because I have some sick, amazing gigs lined up. They’re gonna test me and make me work my butt off, but I can’t wait to get on that stage and show everybody who the hell I am, as well as Hazel
Discover more
We go beyond the field with Queerty’s Q&A series and get to know more about our favorite LGBTQ+ athletes and sports figures, from the music they’re streaming to what catches their eyes on the apps!
ShaverC
The world doesn’t need anymore drag queens. He should try doing something of value.
1898
…says the bitter person whose only achievement is being the first person to comment on queerty stories
DBMC
The world doesn’t need more right wing trolls. ShaverC should do something that’s not destructive.
eightinchnail
Just to let you know just because a person isnt keen on his drag persona doesn’t make them right wing. You lefties are really nasty people who hate EVERYONE who doesn’t conform to the screaming queen mantra.
dbmcvey
@eightinchnail
Shaver has a long history of conservative, anti-trans, anti-drag comments.
You righties need to stop commenting when you don’t know what you’re talking about.
Diplomat
Pardon the fk out of me if I don’t like cross dressing men who freak dance like women sniffing glue overdosed on speed. Just isn’t my traffic lane. Not all men like men in dresses. Get used to it. Left wing R Trump hater here.
Rikki Roze
Nice to see Queerty featuring a guy who doesn’t have huge pecs and arms. He certainly is in great shape and seems to be a very talented and clever young man. An interesting article.
mateo
Cute, but he can’t hold a candle to French diver Jules Bouyer. You go to Bouyer’s videos and virtually ALL the comments there have to do with what he’s packing in his Speedos. A truly scandalous bulge! Oh, and he’s a frighteningly good diver as well.
RyanMBecker
Really? Bouyer has an adorable puppy face but his package never seemed all that special to me. It doesn’t help that he wears some of the LEAST revealing Speedos™ I’ve ever seen on diver.
eightinchnail
He is hot but whole drag thing is a turnoff for me.
dbmcvey
I’m sure he’s broken hearted that some homophobe doesn’t like his drag personae.
Diplomat
Here Here join the club.
Db,
I think your mixing up your tranniness with gay men who like men. Cross dressing isn’t gay. Deal with it.
still_onthemark
His drag name should be Ima Jerkinoff.