Olympic gold medalist and reality TV star Bruce Jenner said on Friday that he identifies as a woman, becoming the highest-profile American to come out as transgender.

The 65-year-old Jenner made the declaration in a wide-ranging interview with ABC's Diane Sawyer, nearly 40 years after his record-breaking Olympic gold-medal win in the decathlon gave him the unofficial title of "World's Greatest Athlete."

At the outset of the interview at Jenner's house in Malibu, California, Sawyer asked, "Are you a woman?" and Jenner responded, "Yes, for all intents and purposes I am a woman."