Olympic Games 2024 - These couples are competing in Paris
These could be the most romantic Olympics ever: Not only are they taking place in Paris, the city of love, but there are also several couples among the athletes. There have already been two proposals. Who better to understand a high-performance athlete with a challenging training plan and strict diet than another sports professional?
Huang Yaqiong and Liu Yuchen
Chinese badminton player Huang Ya Qiong is returning home with two very special pieces of jewelry: the gold medal she won for her performance in the mixed doubles, and an engagement ring from her sweetheart Liu Yuchen, who also plays in the Chinese national badminton team. She said in interviews that she "didn't expect" the proposal after her victory.
Pablo Simonet and Maria Campoy
The Argentine couple Pablo Simonet and Maria Campoy also got engaged in Paris - but before the Games started. While posing with their team on the Seine for official photos, the handball player suddenly stepped forward and got down on one knee in front of the hockey player after nearly a decade together.
Jean Paul Bredau and Lena Bulmahn
There's also a couple in the German athletics team, and they're causing quite a stir. After finishing seventh in the mixed relay on August 2, starting runner Jean Paul Bredau said on ARD: "It wasn't the form today. It was more about what happened before the relay." His girlfriend Lena Bulmahn, who he's been with since 2023, wasn't selected unlike Alica Schmidt, which apparently caused some discontent. Bulmahn criticized on Instagram: "Yes, I'm the second fastest German 400-meter athlete on paper. No, I wasn't nominated for the mixed relay. That's not my decision and not in my hands."
The German Athletics Association quickly reacted to the public dispute and removed Lena Bulmahn from the competition. She was originally supposed to arrive on August 5 and run in the women's 4x400m relay. Jean Paul Bredau can still compete in the men's 400m individual race after an apology.
Lara Vadlau and Lea Schüller
Austrian footballer Lara Vadlau and sailor Lea Schüller have been together for years. Now, both are fighting for a medal at the Summer Games in France. "It's great that we both made it," the FC Bayern striker said in an interview beforehand. However, with a tight training schedule, they might not have much time to spend together in France. "We'll see, maybe we'll run into each other once or twice," they said cautiously before leaving.
Femke Bol and Ben Broeders
The Netherlands won gold in the mixed 4x400m relay on August 3 after an incredible final sprint by Femke Bol. The super runner has a Belgian pole vaulting boyfriend, Ben Broeders. The professional athletes have known each other for a long time and met through athletics. They've been a couple since 2021 and live together in Heelsum, a village near the Dutch city of Arnhem.
Katie Boulter and Alex De Minaur
British tennis player Katie Boulter and Australian Alex De Minaur share more than just a love for tennis. Both made their Olympic debut this year and cheer each other on. "My Olympians," Boulter commented on De Minaur's Instagram during the opening ceremony.
Gaël Monfils and Elina Svitolina
French tennis player Gaël Monfils and his Ukrainian wife Elina Svitolina Monfils are also a tennis couple. They've been together since 2019, with a brief break. They reconciled, got engaged, and married on July 16, 2021. A year later, they welcomed their daughter Skai.
Rossella Fiamingo and Gregorio Paltrinieri
The disciplines of Rossella Fiamingo and Gregorio Paltrinieri couldn't be more different - she's a fencer and he's a swimmer. But the Italian couple, who have been together for three years, seem to share many similarities. For instance, success: on Instagram, they celebrated their two medals won in France. "Two is better than one," they commented.
Ana Carolina Da Silva and Anne Buijs
Ana Carolina Da Silva plays volleyball for Brazil, Anne Buijs for the Netherlands. But the couple isn't separated by the net - sometimes they even kiss through it.
Manon Apithy-Brunet and Boladé Apithy
The French fencing couple supports each other at their third Olympic Games together - and very successfully. Apithy's men's team won bronze in saber, while Apithy-Brunet took gold in the women's individual saber event.
Gabriella Willems and Christian Parlati
Belgian Gabriella Willems has found love with her Italian judoka colleague Christian Parlati - and now she probably has to console him. While she won a bronze medal on July 31, he was unexpectedly displaced by American John Jayne.
Dominik Černý and Hana Burzalová
The Slovak couple will get married after the Olympics. He proposed to her at the finish line of the World Athletics Championships 2023. She accepted the proposal happily - after stopping her watch.
Tara Davis-Woodhall and Hunter Woodhall
Track and field stars Tara Davis-Woodhall and Hunter Woodhall represent the USA at the Olympics. Their paths first crossed at a high school meet in Idaho in 2017. "I thought, 'Damn, that girl is cool. I'm gonna marry that girl'," he recalled in a YouTube video. But they didn't get together right away, as she lived in California and he in Georgia. They stayed in touch and eventually married in October 2022.
Lee Kiefer and Gerek Meinhardt
American fencers Lee Kiefer and Gerek Meinhardt met at the 2012 Olympics in London. They married in 2019 and competed together at the Olympics for the first time in 2021. In Tokyo, Lee Kiefer won gold - and a tight hug from her husband. Besides their athletic careers, they are also studying medicine at the University of Kentucky.
Christen Press and Tobin Heath
Off the field, US women's national soccer team teammates Christen Press and Tobin Heath are a solid duo. They've been a couple for eight years, they revealed during the Paris Games. "We've never hidden it," Press said. "Our people always knew what was going on with us."
Noah Lyles and Junelle Bromfield
Despite the big athletic rivalry between Noah Lyles (USA) and Junelle Bromfield (Jamaica), the couple, who have been together since 2022, enjoys the Olympic life to the fullest, as shown on their Instagram page. There, the couple dances on the track or walks hand in hand through the Olympic Village cafeteria.
Jasmine Moore and Joseph Fahnbulleh
Jasmine Moore of Team USA met her boyfriend Joseph Fahnbulleh, who is competing for Liberia, in the Olympic Village in Tokyo in 2021. Now they're both in Paris. "Our finals in long jump and 200m are on the same night," she told "People". "So I'm thinking, 'Lord, please, let us both get a medal that day!' Hopefully, all our families can just celebrate and go to dinner and stuff."
João Chianca and Luana Silva, the Brazilian couple, are never far from the sea. Their Instagram profiles are filled with photos of them surfing, walking on the beach, or simply relaxing by the water. It's no surprise, then, that they would experience the Olympics together.
Anneli Maley and Merna Whittle
The Australian 3x3 basketball players are not only great on the court but also in their personal lives. "Going to the Olympics with my partner is pretty cool. It's something we'll talk about at our wedding and for many years to come, even when we're old and gray," Maley told the "Daily Mail".
The Olympic Games in Paris have seen several proposals, making it potentially the most romantic Olympics ever. Not only Huang Ya Qiong, a Chinese badminton player, received an engagement ring from her fiance Liu Yuchen after winning a gold medal, but also the Argentine couple Pablo Simonet and Maria Campoy got engaged before the Games started.
