Italian Gymnast Alessia Maurelli Engaged After Bronze Medal Win

Italian rhythmic gymnast Alessia Maurelli won a bronze medal in the group-around competition at the 2024 Paris Summer Olympics — and she’s also going home with a diamond.

Immediately after Maurelli, 27, left the podium on Saturday, August 10, her boyfriend Massimo Bertelloni popped the big question. The shocked gymnast said “yes” to her partner of two years surrounded by her teammates.

“I can’t believe it,” Maurelli told Olympics.com. “It’s a very strange day. I think it’s maybe one of the most beautiful days of my life. I will remember it forever, and I’m very happy. This ring and this medal smell of the future and I’m very happy to live this with my best friends, teammates, and with my future husband.”

Maurelli shared a detailed shot of her engagement ring via Instagram on Sunday, setting off her new jewelry with an Olympic Rings-themed manicure. Other photos from the post show Bertelloni kneeling and the pair embracing with the medal still hung around Maurelli’s neck.

“I said yes.. 💍,” she wrote. “More beautiful than I dreamed as a child 😭❤️.”

It’s the second proposal in the Porte de La Chapelle Arena in Paris since the start of the Summer Olympics. Shortly after winning gold in the badminton mixed doubles alongside her teammate Zheng Siwei, Chinese Olympian Huang Ya Qiong accepted a proposal from boyfriend and fellow badminton player Liu Yuchen.

“I cannot describe the feeling I have because I am happy, happy, happy,” Huang told the official Olympics website. “Getting the gold medal is recognition of our journey. I was surprised by the engagement ring. I’ve been focusing on training to become an Olympic champion. I never expected it. I haven’t thought about how we will celebrate.”

While the athletes themselves are obviously overjoyed, the Olympic proposals have drawn mixed reactions from viewers.

“It’s the most selfish thing ever. Proposing in a moment where you’re supposed to be celebrating your partner,” an X user wrote after Liu’s proposal. “You’re minimizing their moment and making it about yourself instead. Lazy and Selfish. You should plan a separate special event for the sole purpose of proposing.”

Others saw the proposals as a romantic capper to one of the best moments in an athlete’s life.

“I thought proposals were supposed to happen at the highlights of ur life? Whether he creates the highlight or it’s already there wouldn’t u want to feel like ‘this is the best day ever’ [type of] vibe? How is it about him when the proposal is for u?” an X user shared.