Tara Davis-Woodhall of Team United States celebrates winning the gold medal after competing in the Women's Long Jump Final. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images) The Paris Olympics 2024 concluded with remarkable athletic achievements and heartwarming displays of love between athletes and their partners. Notable moments included Armand Duplantis celebrating his victory with his girlfriend, Alice Finot proposing to her partner, and several other romantic gestures.
These instances highlighted the importance of supportive relationships in achieving personal and professional success. The Paris Olympics 2024 has come to a close and so ends the last few weeks of watching brave athletes breaking world records and earning medals, an enormous amount of memes , lots of controversy , Snoop Dogg basically becoming the Olympic mascot and whatever that Australian breakdancer was trying to do. But my favourite part of the Paris Olympics was watching all the displays of love between the athletes and their partners.
It was such a beautiful sight to behold. Paris is known as the City of Love and it really lived up to its name for many of the romantic pairings that descended on the city to watch and compete in the quadrennial event. Swedish-American pole-vaulter Armand "Mondo" Duplantis and his girlfriend Desiré Inglander celebrated the Olympian’s record-breaking victory with a kiss while being cheered on by onlookers.
View this post on Instagram A post shared by Desire ́ Inglander (@desireinglander) Desiré posted a video to her Instagram showing her anticipation before Mondo broke the World Record clearing a height of 6.25 metres. The moment he hit the mat, he made a beeline for his partner with a huge smile on his face.
French runner Alice Finot proposed to her partner, Spanish triathlete Bruno Martinez, with an Olympic pin after finishing fourth in the steeplechase race. "I don't like doing things like everyone else," Finot said, according to AP . "Since he hadn’t done it yet, I thought maybe it was up to me.
" There were many misogynistic comments online about the fact that Alice, a female athlete, was proposing to her male partner instead of the other way around. Some called Bruno 'weak' or insinuated he was less of a man because he had been proposed to. View this post on Instagram A post shared by SPORTbible (@sportbible) Team China badminton player Huang Yaqiong took home a gold medal and an engagement ring when her now fiancé and teammate Liu Yuchen proposed to her after the medal ceremony.
"I cannot describe the feeling I have because I am happy, happy, happy," Huang told Olympics.com. View this post on Instagram A post shared by IndiaSportsNews.
in (@indiasportsnews_in) All in all, there were seven known proposals at the Olympics this year, according to Cosmopolitan. My favourite love moment from the Olympics has to be between Tara Davis-Woodhall and Hunter Woodhall after Tara got the gold for Team USA in the long jump. A video of Hunter screaming in support of his wife, while wearing a 'Team Tara' t-shirt, went viral recently.
In the video, Hunter, who is a Paralympian, is shouting, "Oh my God. Oh my God. Baby, you're the Olympic champion! Oh my God, you did it!" before Tara runs and jumps into his arms.
View this post on Instagram A post shared by The Knot (@theknot) This beautiful moment between the couple , who have been dating since 2017, warmed so many hearts online and IRL. Their love is beautiful to witness and they share so much of their love story and their support of each other on their respective social media platforms. Seeing all these (and many other) moments of love and support between the athletes and their partners at the Paris Olympic Games was not only incredibly touching but served as a reminder that when you’re supported and loved by your partner, your goals feel so much more achievable.
READ MORE | 'The greatest gift': Rachel Kolisi reflects on her family's heartwarming adoption journey Having someone by your side through the tough times while you prepare for the big things in life (like training to go to the Olympics) and celebrating your victories with you is so incredibly important for our mental and even physical health. One study shows that while social support in general is important, support from a romantic partner actually shows better health outcomes. Romantic partners are an important source of help to alleviate distress and "individuals who provide more support to others such as the romantic partner seem to display better physical, emotional, and relational well-being.
" Another study shows that how supportive your romantic partner is affects relationship satisfaction. "Both greater support and less conflict were found to be independently associated with relationship satisfaction, implying that both are necessary for a satisfactory relationship," says the study which also adds that while more supportive couples still have relationship conflicts, their conflicts would be more supportive which also leads to more relationship satisfaction. Newsletter Daily Life Take a breather in your busy day with this curated collection of real-life stories, sitdown interviews, everyday tips and expert insights.
Sign up And while there aren't studies on the effect of supportive partnerships on Olympic athletes (although there should be), seeing these incredible Olympians who are successful in their own right being supported and loved by their partners in a way that fulfils them and adds value to their lives, is really beautiful. I've always believed that couples who grow together stay together. Anyone can say they love you, but do they show you? Would they scream your name while waiting for you at the finish line? Would they propose to you while millions of people are watching? Because if you're loved right, you can do anything.
There's an underrated power in choosing to date or marry someone who really is your best friend and wants to see you win as much as you want it for them. So next time you're wondering if someone is worth it, ask yourself "Would I be the first person they wanted to see after they won a gold medal?" or vice versa. We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives.
Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered. Join News24 today Related Links Paris 2024 | Slim hopes for Team SA to increase medal tally at Olympics Lungani Zama | Paris 2024 was a celebration of the global village of sport Paris 2024 | Mind over medal matters: Top athletes usually have mental edge, says SA sports doc.
