The Olympic Games have led to a couple of royal romances that have stood the test of time. The monarchs of both Denmark and Sweden met their future spouses at the Summer Olympic Games.
King Frederik and Queen Mary
The then-Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark travelled to Sydney to cheer on the Danish athletes at the 2000 Summer Olympic Games. Frederik went out to the Slipp Inn with his brother, Prince Joachim and their cousin, Prince Nikolaos of Greece. Mary Donaldson joined her friend Beatrice Tarnawski for a night out at the pub. There, she met the Crown Prince of Denmark, who later said it was love at first sight.
In Frederik – Crown Prince of Denmark, he said: “It was love at first sight. As soon as I saw her, I really felt she was a soulmate.”
Keld Navntoft, Kongehuset ©
The pair hit it off and began to date. Three years later, their engagement was announced. They married on 14 May 2004 and now have four children: Crown Prince Christian, Princess Isabella, Prince Vincent and Princess Josephine.
Frederik became the King of Denmark upon his mother, Queen Margrethe’s abdication in January 2024. As such, Mary became the Queen consort.
King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia
King Carl Gustaf travelled to Munich as the Crown Prince of Sweden in 1972. There, he met a hostess and interpreter named Silvia Sommerlath. They later said that they just “clicked” upon meeting.
The pair dated secretly for a few years, with Silvia sporting wigs and staying at Princess Christina’s (Carl Gustaf’s sister) apartment.
Carl Gustaf became King of Sweden upon the death of his grandfather in 1973, and he proposed to Silvia with his mother’s engagement ring in early 1976.
Photo: Sara Friberg/The Royal Court of Sweden
He married Silvia in June 1976 in Stockholm. It was the first wedding of a Swedish monarch since 1797.
The couple have three children: Crown Princess Victoria, Prince Carl Philip and Princess Madeleine. Carl Gustaf is now the longest-reigning Swedish and European monarch. He celebrated his Golden Jubilee in 2023.
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