the better halves

15 queer Olympians who make our hearts melt with romantic gold

By Alex Reimer July 25, 2024 at 8:00am

More than 150 out Olympians are in Paris ready to compete in this year’s Games. Their visibility is crucial, showing queer people everywhere it’s possible to be succeed at the highest levels in sports, and enjoy proud and open lives.

One of the ways many LGBTQ+ Olympians showcase their happiness is posting pictures with their partners on social media. For the longest time, queer romance was kept in the shadows, confined to dark rooms and secrecy.

Up until recently, gay athletes, especially male athletes, sought to downplay their differences from their hetero peers. They didn’t want their dating lives to overshadow their athletic accomplishments, or define their existence.

But now, that fear has thankfully subsided. Some of the highest-profile athletes in the world are keen on showing off their same-sex partners, and their unbridled moments of joy.

With the Opening Ceremony taking place tomorrow night, we thought it was the perfect time to highlight some of our favorite, and most famous, Olympic couples. They include champions, heartthrobs, and everybody in between.

Grindr may be blocked in the athlete village, but these participants have already found love! Click through to see 15 Olympians who are winning romantic gold…

Brittney and Cherelle Griner

Brittney Griner is looking to capture her third Olympic gold medal in Paris. But the basketball great won one of life’s great prizes days before the Games: a new baby boy!

Brittney announced the big news at the WNBA All-Star Game in her home city of Phoenix, Arizona. Cherelle gave birth to the couple’s first child days before Brittney left for Paris.

“He is amazing,” Griner said on the podcast We Need To Talk. “They say as soon as you see them, it’s just, everything you thought mattered goes out the window, and that’s literally what happens. It kind of sucks because I have to leave. But at the same time he’ll understand.”

Brittney and Cherelle first met as undergraduates at Baylor University, but didn’t start dating until years later. The couple got married in 2019.

While Brittney was wrongfully detained in Russia, Cherelle, who’s an attorney, emerged as her wife’s biggest advocate. She posted videos on social media of Brittney in court, and was there when President Joe Biden secured her release from captivity.

Brittney and Cherelle were separated for an excruciating 293 days. Now they are back together, ready to embark on a wonderful new chapter in life.

Tom Daley and Dustin Lance Black

Tom Daley and Dustin Lance Black moved quickly. The two A-listers met at a Los Angeles dinner party in 2013, just as Daley was starting to come out. They went on their first date two months later, and have been together ever since!

A four-time Olympic medalist, Daley is the most accomplished diver in British history. Black, meanwhile is a renowned Hollywood producer, and won an Oscar for Milk. Though there’s a 20-year difference between them, Daley says the age gap is irrelevant to their love.

“One thing I learned early on is not to care what other people think,” he wrote in a 2021 essay for the Guardian. “That’s been useful since I’ve been with my husband. I’m 27, he is 47. People have their opinions, but we don’t notice the age gap. When you fall in love, you fall in love.”

Living together in LA, Daley and Black welcomed their second child into the world last year. Daley, who will be competing in his final Olympics, says he came out of retirement on the orders of his eldest. “Papa, I want to see you dive at the Olympics,” he said.

Fortunately, we’ll all receive a chance to watch Daley do what he does best!

Breanna Stewart and Marta Xargay

When Breanna Stewart first met Marta Xargay, they didn’t exactly hit it off. Playing together on a Russian pro basketball team, the two-time gold medalist and WNBA champ says Marta didn’t even talk to her.

But their relationship changed the following year, when Stewart moved back to the U.S. The couple kept in touch, and wound up tying the knot two years later.

Though Marta retired from hoops in 2021, the Spain native has a new role: Breanna’s No. 1 fan. As she once put it on Instagram: “You and me, it’s a forever kind of thing.”

Tierna Davidson and Alison Jahansouz

Tierna Davidson is carrying a rainbow legacy. Following in the footsteps of icons such as Megan Rapinoe and Abby Wombach, the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team star is gunning for more than gold in Paris.

She wants to keep leading the way for queer representation in sports. One way she celebrates her identity is posting photos with her wife, Alison Jahansouz.

“I’ll continue to be proud of myself and my family and my partner, and I won’t shy away from that at any time,” she recently told the New York Times.

Arthur Nory and João Otávio Tasso

Arthur Nory and his boyfriend, hottie João Otávio Tasso, always win the thirst trap game. The Brazilian gymnast, who will be competing in his third Olympics,

At the 2016 Rio Games, Simone Biles jokingly referred to Nory as her “Brazilian BF.” Following the 2020 Tokyo Games, Nory revealed he has a BF for real.

In a June Instagram post of the two of them shirtless on a beach, Tasso said that Nory has “given him luck” since 2017.

We’re certain the feeling is mutual…

Diana Taurasi and Penny Taylor

Widely regarded as one of the greatest WNBA players ever, Diana Taurasi met Penny Taylor when they both played for the Phoenix Mercury. The happy couple won three championships together and celebrated basketball glory, including Taylor’s induction to the WNBA Hall of Fame.

As an 11-time All-Star and six-time gold medalist, Taurasi is obviously poised to join her partner in the Hall. They got married in 2017, and have a beautiful daughter and baby boy.

“It was the most amazing and beautiful day of our lives,” Taurasi said about their wedding. “To be able to share our love with family and close friends meant the world to us.”

Kayla Miracle and Chafin Payne

Coming off a gold medal win at the 2024 Pan American Games, Kayla Miracle, the first out wrestler in Olympic history, is ready to make an impact in Paris.

And she wouldn’t be where she is without Chafin. They’ve been dating for three years, and regularly profess their love for one another.

“I am beyond thankful that I get to love Chafin,” Kayla posted at the end of Pride Month. “She doesn’t just make my life better, she makes me better. I hope everyone can find someone like that because dang it feels so good.”

Nikki Hiltz and Emma Gee

Nikki Hiltz and Emma Gee are true trailblazers. Hiltz, who identifies as transgender and nonbinary, is the America record-holder in the women’s mile and won their first U.S. National Championship last summer. They will be the second out nonbinary person to ever compete in the Olympics, and the first for Team USA.

Gee, for her part, was the first out LGBTQ+ athlete at BYU, a conservative Mormon school. Gee, a track star in college, first connected with Hiltz on Instagram, and they’ve been together for four years.

They competed together at the U.S. Olympic trials, which seemed to only burnish their love. “

“Racing brave is never something to be disappointed in,” Hiltz wrote on Instagram. “I told Emma yesterday that when things don’t go my way, I’ve found over and over again that’s when love has shined through the brightest.”

Chelsea Gray and Tipesa Gray

Chelsea Gray is a three-time WNBA champion gunning for her second Olympic gold medal. And the Las Vegas Aces star credits her wife, Tipesa, with her incredible success.

“I wouldn’t have been able to do it. Her being here is everything,” she said.

The couple met at Long Beach State, where Tipesa played basketball, and got married in 2019. They welcomed their first child, a baby girl, earlier this year. (And yes, she was on the floor when Chelsea received her third ring earlier this season!)

Jack Woolley and Dave Stig

Jack Woolley wasn’t always comfortable as an out athlete. In fact, the Irish Olympian and mixed martial arts master expressed regret about coming out prior to the Tokyo Games.

But now, Woolley is in a better place as he prepares for his second Olympics. He attributes his growth to Dave, whom he met shortly after Tokyo.

“It’s just nice to have,” Woolley said about his relationship with Dave. “I actually met him the week I got home from Tokyo. It was kind of like a big change. I went into Tokyo not really having the support there, maybe it was friends and family, kind of being a little bit lost, but I got back from Tokyo and I had somebody there. It was structure.”

Marta Silva and Carrie Lawrence

Marta Silva, the top goal-scorer in World Cup history, is considered the greatest female soccer player of all-time. With goals in five straight Olympics (another record), she enters this year’s Games with an unparalleled resume.

When Marta isn’t competing for her native country, she plays for the Orlando Pride in the NWSL. That’s where she met Carrie, who often posts adorable pics of them enjoying life.

“Happy birthday to the person who always puts a smile on my face, I’m so lucky to share this life with you. I love you,” she wrote this year on Marta’s birthday.

Ana Marcela Cunha and Juliana Melhem

Ana Marcela Cunha is a true icon in her sport. The Brazilian open water swimmer is a seven-time world champion, and won gold by .9 of a second after a nearly two-hour race in Tokyo!

Away from the water, Cunha also recently captured a big win… in love. She married her partner, personal trainer Juliana Melham, last year.

“WE GOT MARRIED!! I LOVE YOU !!,” she wrote to commemorate the occasion.

Kellie Harrington and Mandy Loughlin

Kellie Harrington won Olympic gold when she competed three years ago in Tokyo. But the Irish boxer managed to supersede that incredible triumph the following summer, when she married her partner of 13 years, Mandy Loughlin.

The two met through boxing, and say there was instant chemistry.

“I suppose it’s just such a difference – a north inner city girl and a south side girl might just not get on straight away but opposites obviously attract and it was the best thing ever,” Mandy told the Irish Mirror.

Rafaela Silva and Eleudis Valentim

Brazilian judoka Rafaela Silva publicly came out after her gold medal performance at the 2016 Rio Games. A few years later, she started dating fellow judoka, Eleudis Valentim, and they married in 2020.

They celebrate all of life’s milestones together, athletically and personally.

“Today is the day of this little lady, a little woman who stresses me out and calms me down at the same intensity. I am grateful to God for putting a strong and warrior person by my side at the moment when I needed a partner the most and God presented me with this wonderful gift,” Rafaela wrote earlier this year on Eleudis’ birthday.

Campbell Harrison and Justin Maire

Campbell Harrison, a climber from New Zealand, celebrated his Olympic qualification by kissing his boyfriend, Justin. And homophobes had a problem with it.

When the official Olympics Instagram account shared a photo of Campbell and Justin’s embrace, antigay commenters responded with scorn.

But Campbell promptly shut them down. “All these people mad cause we’re hotter than they are 😘,” he wrote in the comments, delivering the knockout blow.

The truth hurts! 💅💅💅

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