At the Olympics, skier Breezy Johnson won a gold medal — and an engagement ring, too
CORTINA D’AMPEZZO, Italy — The finish line at the 2026 Winter Games has brought Breezy Johnson two of the best moments of her life this week — first, an Olympic gold medal, then on Thursday, a marriage proposal.
Shortly after reaching the bottom of the course at Thursday’s Olympic super-G race, Johnson’s partner, Connor Watkins, was waiting with an engagement ring.
Johnson had always dreamed of getting engaged at the Olympics, she told reporters afterward.
Theirs is a modern love story: They met on the dating app Bumble, Johnson said. For their first date, they went to brunch.
“I had no idea who she was,” Watkins said. “Ten minutes into the conversation, I was, like, ‘Hey, so what do you do?’ And that was an interesting answer at first. I was a little taken aback.”
When they met in 2023, Johnson had already competed in one Olympic Games and qualified for second (before being forced to withdraw after injuring her knee in a pair of crashes in the weeks before the Games). She was a regular in the top ten on the World Cup circuit and had reached the podium seven times.
On Thursday, Watkins, who grew up in Georgia, laughed when asked if he was intimidated initially. “Yeah, absolutely,” he said. “I was like, ‘I’m out-kicking my coverage here.'”
In Thursday’s Olympic super-G race, Johnson was one of 17 racers who recorded a did-not-finish on a difficult course. “I was going for it. I felt like I was skiing pretty well but I knew I was getting a little bit low,” she said. After a jump she lost control, skied over a gate and crashed into the netting — but was able to stand up and ski to the bottom herself.
Watkins, waiting at the bottom with the ring in his pocket, hesitated as he watched her crash. “I’m hoping she’s okay, first and foremost,” he said afterward. “There was a Plan B just in case there needed to be.” A staffer covertly spoke to Johnson to gauge her mood, Watkins said — “to make sure she was still gonna be receptive to a proposal at that time” — he then went ahead with the proposal afterward.
“I was feeling kind of stupid, which is the moment you want the people you love around you,” Johnson said.
“His words were so beautiful,” she said. “I was just crying and thinking about how much I love him.”
Judge temporarily blocks Pentagon action against Mark Kelly over illegal orders video
Kelly, an Arizona Democrat, sued Hegseth after the Defense Secretary moved to formally censure him for participating in a video where he told service members they can refuse illegal orders.
Olympic athletes push their bodies to the limit. Should we?
Elite athletes often push through pain to achieve victory. But, everyday exercisers need to distinguish between soreness which is normal and pain which is the body's way of telling you to stop.
Trump border czar Tom Homan announces Minnesota immigration surge is ending
The aggressive enforcement operation resulted in thousands of arrests, and two U.S. citizens were fatally shot in Minneapolis by federal immigration agents.
Community organizations step up in Gulf South winter storm recovery: ‘The need is so big’
After January's winter storm, the Oxford community has come together to take care of those in need — not just while waiting for other responders, but also fill persistent gaps.
Gothic lust, chair lust and big-league dreams are in theaters this weekend
A fever-dream of a "Wuthering Heights" adaptation is out this weekend starring Margot Robbie and Jacob Elordi. And Stephen Curry-produced GOAT is a speedy, snazzily animated sports flick.
Camp Mystic parents from Alabama seek stronger camp regulations
Sarah Marsh of Birmingham, Ala. was one of 27 Camp Mystic campers and counselors swept to their deaths when floodwaters engulfed cabins at the Texas camp on July 4, 2025. Sarah’s parents are urging lawmakers in Alabama and elsewhere to tighten regulations.
