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“I Don’t Want to Waste My Time” – Michael Phelps’ Wife Was Hesitant When He Wanted to Start Over After Breakup

Published 07/05/2022, 1:32 PM EDT

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Instances of people experiencing doubt over a decision they made and then trying to make amends are not rare. Numerous examples are available to draw from the lives of famous people. One of the most notable instances that comes to mind is that of Michael Phelps and his wife, Nicole Johnson.

Phelps and Nicole met for the first time at the venue of the 2007 ESPY Award. They hit it off from their first meeting and soon started dating.

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Nicole Johnson was hesitant about taking Michael Phelps back

Their relationship did not last long the first time around. The couple broke up in 2008 following the Beijing Olympics. However, the two got back together for a second time in 2010 before breaking up again after a year.

After the second breakup, Johnson thought things would stay that way and left it at that. However, she texted Phelps in 2012 to congratulate him on his medal haul at the London Olympics.

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Unbeknownst to both at the time, things would change a year later. In 2013, Phelps contacted Johnson and expressed his desire to get back together. But Nicole would decline his request.

Recollecting the events, Johnson recalled saying, “‘You just want to do what you want to do. I don’t want to waste my time.’”

The former Miss California was upset with Phelps. But the 28-time Olympic medalist was very serious about his decision. In time, the decorated swimmer contacted her mother. He wanted another chance to make their relationship work.

Not many are aware of what transpired that day, but things must have ended on a positive note. The following year, Johnson booked a flight to Baltimore to spend a weekend there.

Recollecting the events, she said, “We missed each other.”

“We had both had different relationships, but we never found anybody who understood each other the way we did,” Johnson added.

The engagement and subsequent marriage of the couple

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Phelps and Johnson made their relationship official through an engagement in 2015. Although the couple initially planned to wed after Phelps returned from the Rio Olympics, they had to move it to an earlier date.

The reason was the ease in traveling facilities for their then newborn son, Boomer. The couple had a small wedding ceremony, attended by close family and friends on June 13, 2016. However, they held a grandiose second wedding ceremony in Cabo on October 29, after Phelps’ return from Rio.

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Although the couple initially had their fair share of upheavals in their relationships, they powered through these testing times to emerge stronger than before.

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Written by:

Aklanta Chetia

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Aklanta Chetia Wanniang is a US Sports author for EssentiallySports. He has a Master's degree in Literature from the University of Delhi. With an interest in learning about multiple sports, Aklanta himself is a former sportsperson and has participated in state and national level swimming events.
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Edited by:

Manaal Siddiqui