Italian highjumper Gianmarco Tamberi issued a heartfelt apology to his wife after losing his wedding ring during the Olympic opening ceremony on Friday.
The 32-year-old was named as flagbearer for Italy alongside Arianna Errigo at the Paris 2024 opening ceremony, where 85 boats sailed along the River Seine carrying team delegations.
However, in an Instagram post addressed to his wife Chiara Bontempi Tamberi, the highjumper revealed that during his ceremony duties his wedding ring flew into the Seine.
“I’m sorry my love, I’m terribly sorry,” Tamberini posted.
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“Too much water, too many kilos lost in the last few months or perhaps the uncontainable enthusiasm of what we were doing. Probably all three, the fact remains that I heard it slip away, I saw it fly… I followed it with my eyes until I saw it bounce inside the boat.
“A tinkle of hope… But unfortunately the bounce was in the wrong direction and floating more than a thousand times in the air I saw it dive into the water as if that was the only place it wanted to be. A few moments that lasted forever.”
Tamberi hit the headlines at Tokyo 2021 after he and Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim elected to share gold rather than face a jump-off.
He is set to begin his medal defence at the Stade de France on August 7.
Despite his Paris 2024 experience getting off to a bumpy start, the Italian looked on the flip side in his post, suggesting the ring’s loss could present the ideal opportunity for the couple to renew their vows.
“But if it really had to happen, if I really had to lose this faith, I couldn’t imagine a better place,” Tamberi continued.
“It will remain forever in the riverbed of the city of love, flown away while I was trying to carry the Italian tricolor as high as possible during the opening ceremony of the most important sporting event in the world.
“If I had to make up an excuse I would never have been able to be so imaginative.
“I think there could be a huge poetic side behind yesterday’s misdeed and if you want we will throw yours into that river too so that they will be together forever and we will have one more excuse to, as you have always asked me, renew our promises and get married again.
“May it be a good omen for returning home with an even bigger gold!”
Tamberi’s wife appeared to forgive the high jumper and replied in the comments, saying: “Only you can turn something like this into something romantic.”
