American Swimmer Ryan Murphy’s Unexpected Bronze Medal Celebration: Surprise Gift from His Wife

As the Olympian circled the pool deck, his wife held a sign revealing the gender of their baby due in January.

NANTERRE, France — It’s a girl.

American swimmer Ryan Murphy received the joyous news from his wife Bridget Konttinen in the stands on Monday night at the Paris Olympics.

Murphy secured a bronze in the 100-meter backstroke. During the medal ceremony, he noticed Konttinen holding up a sign announcing their first child would be a girl.

“I was walking back around, and Bridget was holding up a sign that said, ‘Ryan, it’s a girl,’” he said. “That was the first time I heard the gender.”

“We honestly thought it was going to be a boy,” he added. “And everyone we talked to agreed.”

A Jacksonville Jaguars fan, Murphy noted that quarterback Trevor Lawrence and his wife are also expecting a daughter.

“I hope our daughters can be friends,” he said.

Murphy is renowned for his swimming prowess, with three gold medals from the 2016 Rio Olympics and a gold, silver, and bronze from Tokyo 2021. He earned his first medal in Paris, finishing third behind Thomas Ceccon of Italy and Xu Jiayu of China.

After the gender reveal, the focus shifted entirely to the baby news rather than his race.

“I think that just kind of lit me up,” he said. “And really brought this night to a whole other level.”