Olympic Swimmer Ryan Murphy Learns His Baby’s Sex After Winning Bronze Medal
"Ryan it's a girl!" the pro swimmer learned thanks to a sign held by his wife Bridget Konttinen during the 100-meter backstroke
Jari Pestelacci/getty; Team USA/instagram
Winning a bronze medal at the 2024 Olympics wasn't Ryan Murphy's only big moment on Monday, July 29.
After Murphy, 29, received his bronze medal for finishing third in the 100-meter backstroke race, his wife Bridget Konttinen stood in the stands and held up a handwritten sign that read, "Ryan it's a girl!" He was later spotted in the stands hugging Konttinen before the parents-to-be shared a kiss.
"I was walking back around and Bridget was holding up a sign and it said — 'Ryan, it's a girl,' " Murphy recalled, according to the Associated Press. "That was the first time I heard the gender."
He added, "We both — we honestly both thought it was going to be a boy. And everyone — like everyone — we were talking to, they thought it was going to be a boy."
Murphy already has high hopes for his daughter's future BFF, pointing out that Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence and his wife Marissa Lawrence are also expecting a girl.
"I hope our daughters can be friends," he confessed.
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Jari Pestelacci/getty
Team USA and USA Swimming's official Instagram pages posted a sweet photo that showed Konttinen holding the sign, with a little help from her loved ones.
In the comment section, Murphy's fellow gold medalist swimmer Michael Phelps wrote, "Congrats Murph!!"
Murphy's bronze medal marks his seventh overall, making him one of the most decorated Olympic athletes of all time.
Jari Pestelacci/getty
He finished at 52.39 seconds. Thomas Ceccon of Italy swam in at 52 seconds flat, capturing the gold medal, and Jiayu Xu of China won silver at 52.32.
In February, Murphy credited Konttinen, his college sweetheart whom he married in September 2023, for his success as he prepared for the Summer Games in Paris.
"I think she's someone who definitely gets me just motivated about life," Murphy said in an exclusive interview with PEOPLE. "She's super optimistic, and I think that's just been really helpful for me in terms of my approach to the sport."
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