“Was My Escort”- Michael Phelps Recalls the First Time He Met Wife Nicole Johnson 15 Years Ago

Swimming legend Michael Phelps retired from swimming in 2016 after he completed his Olympic legacy at the Rio Games. He cemented his title as the most decorated Olympic athlete and broke an over 2000-year Olympic record for the most individual gold medals. Phelps had achieved everything he wanted in his swimming career.

Now, it was time to focus on his family and his newborn son, whom he and his wife welcomed just three months before the Olympics. His family has always been important to him. Today, he’s celebrating the time he first met his wife.

Michael Phelps and his wife celebrate their first encounter

The swimming GOAT has been with his wife, Nicole Johnson Phelps, for a long time. They dated on and off for years before finally reuniting and taking their relationship to the next level in 2014. On her Instagram story, Nicole Phelps shared memories from the day, they first met.

She posted a picture of her husband on the 2007 ESPY Awards red carpet and wrote, “15 years ago today… day before the ESPYs I met this man.” We can even see a glimpse of Nicole behind him that she tagged with “Hehe, look at me working in the background 🤣”

Phelps shared their story in an exclusive with Entertainment Tonight. “My wife was my escort here 10 years ago, [when] she was working with ESPN. It’s funny, she always tells the story like, ‘I wanted somebody different,’ and I was like, ‘Oh thanks honey, really, really like that,’” he recalled. Nicole revealed she had wanted to be paired with Travis Pastrana.

READ MORE: ‘Wanted His Autograph So Bad and He Snubbed Me’- Olympics GOAT Michael Phelps Recalls Run-in With Former Orioles Pitcher That ‘Stuck With Him His Whole Life’

But that one chance meeting blossomed into something beautiful for the pair. They hit it off immediately. “She’s like, ‘Everything works out for a reason.’ And, you know, we’ve been together on and off for 10 years and now we have a beautiful son together and we are very happy,” he continued.

They attended the ESPY Awards as a couple about a decade later

About ten years after their first encounter, Michael Phelps and his wife returned to the ESPY Awards. The 2017 awards arrived after another enormously successful Olympic cycle, and Phelps won two more honors to add to his collection.

Watch This Story: Inside Swimming Legend Michael Phelps And Nicole Johnson’s Secret Marriage

Phelps said in his speech for the Best Record-Breaking Performance, “Today is my wife’s birthday, and we met here ten years ago. It’s the most amazing thing in the world. Thank you.” It was his third time receiving the award out of his nine total ESPY wins.

The couple now has three children, Boomer, Beckett, and Maverick. His whole family was there to support him when he got inducted into the US Olympic Hall of Fame last month. Phelps has also talked about how he doesn’t want his kids to follow in his footsteps.

He explains, “I don’t want them to live in my footsteps. And I also know everything about—I know the ins and the outs, the good, the bad, and the ugly. So, you know, as a parent, it just—it frightens me.”