Have you ever been in love? If yes, then surely you’d have dreamed of that grand proposal. The idea of your grand proposal could vary; some of you might want a room full of flowers while some might want a ring sipped in their champagne glasses. Whether it is a bunch of musicians under the stars for you or a serene beach at sunset, everyone has their own vision of the perfect proposal.
The Summer Olympics in the city of love has raised the bar for people across the world. Behind the muscle and aggression, the athletes of Olympics 2024 didn’t shied away from vocalizing their love to their partners on the international ground. The Pairs Olympics 2024 witnessed 7 grand proposals that swept the internet off its feet.
Let’s take a look:
American rower Justin Best had a remarkable experience at the 2024 Olympics, achieving two significant milestones. He secured Team USA’s first gold medal in rowing in 60 years and proposed to his girlfriend of nine years, Lainey Duncan.
On August 5, during a live appearance on the Today show, Best asked Duncan to marry him in front of family members holding 2,738 yellow roses, each representing a day they maintained their Snapchat streak over the years.
“Lainey is my other half. She is fiercely intelligent, effortlessly beautiful, boundlessly creative, and radiates kindness to everyone she meets,” Best shared with PEOPLE. “We have gone through everything in our adult lives together and I have seen her grow into an amazing woman and she has guided me into the man I am today.”
Best mentioned, “Paris is Lainey’s favorite city,” making it the ideal location for his proposal once he learned the Games would be held there.
“I got the gold and the girl, and she got the diamond,” he joked on Today.
U.S. shot putter Payton Otterdahl, who finished fourth in the shot put event on August 3, proposed to his girlfriend Maddy Nilles the following day in front of the Eiffel Tower. Isn’t it ‘THE PROPOSAL’ for many of us! Otterdahl posted charming photos of the proposal on Instagram, showing him presenting the ring to Nilles and sharing a romantic kiss with her.
“Meanwhile, in the City of Love… I love you forever, Maddy Nilles! @maddynilles27 ❤️,” the Olympian wrote in his caption.
Nilles, who works as a track and field assistant coach in Nebraska, shared Otterdahl’s post on her Instagram Stories, adding, “Je vous aime (I LOVE YOU).”
After Huang Yaqiong secured the gold medal in mixed doubles badminton on August 2, her Olympic teammate had an extra surprise in store. Men’s doubles player Liu Yuchen presented Huang with a bouquet of flowers and proposed to her in front of the audience at the La Chapelle Arena.
The athlete shared with the Associated Press through an interpreter, “For me, the proposal is very surprising because I have been preparing for the game. Today I am an Olympic champion and I got proposed [to], so that’s something I didn’t expect.”
Before the first game of the Olympics began, Argentinian field hockey player Maria Campoy was already a winner, receiving an engagement ring from her boyfriend, handball player Pablo Simonet.
In a video shared on Simonet’s Instagram, the teams from handball and field hockey gathered for a group photo. Simonet then stepped aside to propose to Campoy. Overcome with emotion, Campoy hugged her fiancé while their teammates cheered in the background.
“The woman in my life gave me a ‘yes’ 🤩 ❤️,” Simonet wrote in Spanish in the caption of his July 24 post. “In a dream place, where everything began and where we fought so hard to be.”
While French athlete Alice Finot didn’t medal in the 3000-meter steeplechase, she achieved a personal victory by getting engaged. After setting a new European record with a time of 8:58.67, Finot ran over to her boyfriend, Spanish triathlete Bruno Martínez Bargiela, and proposed with a pin that said, “Love is in Paris.”
Bargiela, visibly surprised, accepted the proposal, and the couple shared an emotional embrace as the crowd cheered.
Finot shared her thoughts with reporters, stating, “I told myself that if I ran under nine minutes, knowing that nine is my lucky number and that we’ve been together for nine years, then I would propose. I don’t like doing things like everyone else. Since he hadn’t done it yet, I told myself that maybe it was up to me to do it,” according to the Daily Mail.
Three years before Sarah Steyaert and her skiff sailing partner Charlotte Picon competed in the Games, their partners had promised to propose if they won a gold or silver medal. Although they only secured bronze, both their boyfriends were waiting at the shore with engagement rings.
“Of course, we had to say yes,” Steyaert remarked at a press conference following the medal race, proudly displaying her engagement ring. She now shares two daughters with her fiancé.
