French Olympic athlete Alice Finot just missed a spot on the podium, after finishing in fourth place in the women's 3000-meter steeplechase. Nevertheless, even without a medal she had plenty to celebrate, as the track star proposed to her boyfriend.
To point out, Finot from France had a plan going into her race, that if she finished under nine minutes, she was going to ask her boyfriend to marry her.
That is to say, the 33-year-old put up a time of 8:58.67, which in fact broke the European record, previously held by Russia's Gulnara Samitova-Galkina (8:58.81; 2008 Beijing Olympics).
"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," Finot said.
French athlete Alice Finot broke the European steeplechase record, finishing fourth in the final and proposed after. 🥹 #ParisOlympics pic.twitter.com/BreMAAsq2A
— NBC Olympics & Paralympics (@NBCOlympics) August 7, 2024
Finot is well aware that this goes against the cultural norm, as in almost every country the boy proposes to the girl, yet she says she likes to do it her own way.
"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. So, I gave a pin that I ran with to my boyfriend. On it, it says: 'Love is in Paris.'"
All in all, the longtime boyfriend seems to have said 'yes,' which makes this one of many successful Olympic marriage proposals in the "City of Love."
Related: Olympic Chinese Badminton Player Huang Yaqiong Gets Proposed To By Teammate After Winning Gold Medal
