He Zi's proposal of marriage was a surprise addition to her silver medal as the Chinese diver stood on the Olympic podium in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday.
He, 25, of Bejing, was on the awards stand after finishing second in the three-meter springboard diving competition when she was approached with a ring by boyfriend Qin Kai, 30, who's on China's men's diving team, noted NPR. Qin placed the ring on He's finger and the two embraced.
A video of the proposal, with He Zi shaking her head "yes," has been viewed more than 750,000 times on YouTube.
"I didn't know he would propose today and I didn't expect myself to marry myself out so early," He Zi told
Reuters after the tearful proposal. "I saw him during the afternoon and he seemed to be memorizing something, so I asked him 'what are you doing?' and he said he was singing."
"I've forgotten most of what he's said (during the proposal), but it's largely what you can expect like promises, but what touched me the most is that he said he was willing to be bullied by me for life."
The winner of the He Zi's diving event, Chinese teammate Shi Tingmao, told Reuters she was in on the proposal event.
"I'm really happy for them, because these years, be it career or relationships-wise, they have had to face a lot of pressure."
Qin won a bronze medal in his synchronized diving competition last week.
It was the second proposal of the Rio Olympics. Last week, Majorie Enya, 28, part of the staff at the Brazil rugby venue, asked Brazil women's player Isadora Cerullo, 25, to marry her after the finals of the women's rugby competition, reported BBC Sports.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.