Paris’ nickname, the “City of Love,” is not just for show. The Eiffel Tower, Seine, and Love Lock Bridge are only a few attractions that make Paris the perfect destination for lovers. Romance took center stage with the iconic city hosting the 2024 Summer Olympics. Athletes won medals, broke records, and captivated the world, but some of the most memorable moments came from the romantic gestures of the athletes throughout the games.
A story of finding love through the games even after a breakup captured the hearts of fans watching around the world Aug. 2 when mixed doubles tennis partners Katerina Siniakova and Tomas Machae went into the competition as exes. The couple had started dating in 2020, but split up about a month before the Olympics began. In a shocking turn of events, the duo won the gold medal for the Czech Republic and celebrated by sharing a kiss, leaving many to wonder if the two are back together. When Olympic reporters asked the couple about their relationship they said their relationship status is top-secret.
Later in the games, 24-year-old Armanda ‘Mondo’ Duplantis, a Louisiana-born pole vaulter, broke the world record for pole vaulting for the tenth time, clearing 6.25 meters and winning a gold medal for Sweden during the Olympics Aug. 5. Immediately after landing, he ran to his girlfriend in the stands and the two shared a hug while all the cameras were on them to capture the cute gesture. The moment went viral online as everyone loved to see the romance on social media platforms. Many people started editing the moment behind the song “The Alchemy” by Taylor Swift, particularly the lyrics, “Where’s the trophy? He just comes running over to me,” because of the uncanny similarity between the lyrics and Duplantis’ reaction to breaking the world record.
In a similar situation couple Tara Davis-Woodhall and Hunter Woodhall also made waves at the Olympics when Davis-Woodhall won her first gold medal for the long jump. They quickly became a fan-favorite when Davis-Woodhall ran to her husband in the stands, who was wearing a Team Tara shirt, and jumped into his arms to celebrate. Both are athletes, but Woodhall lost both of his legs when he was a baby. Despite this setback, Woodhall joined a track team with his friends when he was fifteen and went on to win his first gold in the 2024 Paralympics shortly after Davis won hers. The two met at the Simplot Games indoor athletic meet in Idaho in 2017. They soon started a long-distance relationship leading to their marriage in 2022 making them an athletic power couple. The couple became so popular that the Paralympics official TikTok page posted a slide show of the two including photos of the celebration when Davis ran to Woodhall after winning her first gold medal.
Some athletes embraced the city of love at the Olympics by proposing after their games. French steeplechase racer Alice Finot proposed immediately after her race. When she broke the European record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase she ran to her boyfriend, Bruno Martinez, and proposed to him in the stands and gave him a pin that said “Love is in Paris.”
After winning the gold in the mixed doubles final against South Korea, Chinese badminton player Huang Yaqiong was proposed to moments after her podium ceremony. Liu Yuchen, a fellow Olympic badminton player, was the lucky guy who popped the question, and she said yes.
The commotion around all the romances in the Olympics made the event more interesting to watch. Previously, I had never watched the Olympics, but since the internet, especially TikTok, fell in love with all the new couples and started sharing touching moments, more people connected with the athletes, including me. It was heart-warming to witness the relationships of the different athletes all across the world, reminding people that while these athletes spend time training and preparing to compete, they still have time for love in their lives. Hopefully, the next Olympics will showcase just as much love as the summer Paris Olympics did.
