Lilly King had just enough time to take off her goggles and swim cap after placing second in the women’s 200-meter breaststroke before a surprise meeting with her boyfriend James Wells on the pool deck at the U.S. Olympic swim trials in Indianapolis on Thursday.
Wells was waiting with a speech and a hidden ring he pulled from his back pocket before taking a knee to ask “Lillia Camille King, will you marry me?” King covered her mouth in shock before responding, “Yes, yes!” and embracing her new fiancé.
King, a native of Evansville, Ind., and a former Indiana swimmer, might have been tipped off to the proposal by a fellow swimmer who suggested she put her hair down after exiting the pool, but she laughed upon realizing why.
After Lilly King qualified for her second race for the Paris Olympics, her fiancé gave her a ring of her own. 💍 #SwimTrials24 pic.twitter.com/UgnfeyJYgO
— NBC Sports (@NBCSports) June 21, 2024
The engagement occurred right after King pulled off a thrilling comeback to clinch a spot in a second Olympic race. The five-time Olympic medalist turned on the jets in the final 50 meters of the 200m race to pass Alex Walsh and finish with a time of 2:21.93 seconds. King had already punched her ticket to Paris with a win in the women’s 100m…
