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in collaboration with
Amélie Boukhobza (Clinical Psychologist)
It’s not just medals that are being won during these Paris Olympics. Several athletes will also leave with a ring on their finger, marriage proposals having been a national sport during these two weeks. But why such enthusiasm? Did the exceptional setting play a role in these couples? Our psychologist’s opinion.
There are those who will leave with a medal from these 2024 Olympic Games and others (sometimes the same ones) who will also have an engagement ring on their finger. Because if this Parisian edition shines with its monuments and its competitions, it is also the surprising place of many marriage proposals. So much so that one can wonder if it is not a sport in its own right!
It’s raining marriage proposals in the city of love
So, Alice Finot, who set a new European record in the 3,000 metres steeplechase on Tuesday 6 August, rushed to the end of the track towards her partner, to ask him to marry her straight away, as she had promised herself if she managed to achieve this exceptional performance.
Skippers Charline Picon and Sarah Steyaert, who won bronze on Friday August 2 in the 49er FX, were treated to a surprise double kneel from their respective companions a few minutes after their arrival.
Chinese badminton player Huang Yaqiong, for her part, barely had time to wear her gold medal, when her partner offered her an engagement ring in front of the cameras. In short, love has never been far from victories.
The exceptional setting probably motivated their decision.
The admiration at stake, the fervor, the magical places may have been triggering factors, as analyzed by Amélie Boukhobza, clinical psychologist.
“It’s very funny, I didn’t know that the Olympics had given rise to many marriage proposals! But it raises the question of the extraordinary setting and its importance for a marriage proposal. Symbolically, you still have to make it a memorable moment, a marriage proposal is not nothing. So an exceptional setting can give the proposal an aura of grandeur and solemnity. In the context of the Olympics, the accomplishment of a sporting feat can seem like an ideal moment to seal a commitment.”
Making a request in such a context can then be a good choice to strengthen the memory and emotional attachment linked to this moment.Not to mention the photos that will be posted on social media, the Olympics or another exceptional setting will add to the spectacular effect!”
The euphoria of the moment can also be the cause
It is also very likely, according to the psychologist, that the requests are made in this context, under the influence of euphoria.To go further, it would be interesting to examine whether the number of requests varies according to the number of medals won, depending on the week.”
In this case, there would be a danger: that the exaltation of the moment, the adrenaline, would mask the reflection necessary for long-term commitment, preventing us from fully considering the consequences.Then the intense emotions felt during the Olympics can be transitory, and the daily reality after the event can offer a different perspective, sometimes more sober. What matters above all is the sincerity of the feelings and the depth of the commitment.”
But let’s give the athletes the opportunity to savor their victories at home, both sporting and personal. One thing is certain, for 2 weeks, Paris was the city of sport, but it also knew how to remain the city of lovers.