Australian Olympic Swimmer Stephanie Rice Engaged to Partner of 7 Months: ‘To Fresh Starts and Second Chances’

Mar. 15, 2025

From Left: Mark Lassey and Stephanie Rice.Photo:Stephanie Rice/Instagram

Stephanie Rice/Instagram

Australian swimmer Stephanie Rice is taking her love story to new depths! The retired Olympian is officially engaged to pastor Mark Lassey.

Rice, 36, and her fiancé announced the news on Thursday, Sept. 5 with ajoint Instagram postfeaturing scenes from the proposal at Dubai’s Atlantis the Royal luxury beach resort. A carousel of six photos first showed Lassey, 46, with a ring box in hand and then followed with snaps of the couple embracing and sharing in the moment.

“Here’s to fresh starts and second chances … Yes to a lifetime with you 💍,” the three-time 2008 Beijing gold medalist captioned the post, adding a bible verse quote, “Seek your happiness in the Lord, and he will give you your heart’s desire.”

From Left: Stephanie Rice and Mark Lassey.Stephanie Rice/Instagram

The champion athlete dressed up for the occasion in a tea-length floral dress with white petal embellishments around the collar and sleeves. Shortly after posting the photos, Lassey uploaded a selfie with Rice’s new ring on full display to his Instagram Stories. He tagged Perth-based ring specialist brandCharles Edward Jewellersto credit the bling.

According to their social media posts from the summer, Rice and her fiancé — who is dad to three sons, per his Instagram bio — met this year. They celebrated about five months together this July, which Lassey commemoratedwith photos and a heartfelt captionlisting some of Rice’s special qualities.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

“She makes u feel like u r the most important person in the world. Not just me, anyone she meets.@itsstephricegives u her undivided attention,” Lassey wrote. “I’ve seen it when she meets a person for the first time, stopping her in the street or at church when she sees a friend.”

He continued to tout her intelligence, faith, encouraging attitude and finally, her loyalty. “She is loyal. Loyal in the way that brings unity, create flow and trust. Loyal in a way that u know she has ur back, wants the best for u, loyal that create security and blessing,” he wrote.

A few weeks later, Rice alsoshared some meaningful wordsto honor their fast-paced love story with accompanying photos on Instagram. “When we met almost 5 months ago, we both knew this was different!” her caption began.

“From the start, there was a deep intentionally between us, and because of the complexities of our lives we wanted to keep these first few months between close family and friends, and enjoy the wonder of falling in love,” she continued.

source: people.com