"Keep shining, wish I could be with you": Alex de Minaur pens heartfelt birthday wish for girlfriend Katie Boulter after her Paris Olympics heartbreak
Australian tennis star Alex de Minaur showed his romantic side as he wished his girlfriend and fellow tennis player Katie Boulter a happy 28th birthday. De Minaur shared a sweet message to Boulter amidst a disappointing Paris Olympics campaign for both athletes.
Both de Minaur and Boulter participated in the 2024 Paris Olympics, but neither found the success they hoped for. The Aussie, who missed the 2021 Tokyo Olympics due to a positive COVID-19 test, was the fifth seed in the men's singles at Paris.
Drawn against Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff in the opening round, the Australian was forced to withdraw due to a hip injury, the same issue that caused him to pull out of Wimbledon before his quarterfinal match with Novak Djokovic. Nevertheless, he competed in the doubles event with Alexei Popyrin, where they lost in the first round to Americans Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram, 6-2, 6-3.
Meanwhile, Boulter also faced early disappointment at the Paris Olympics. The Brit was defeated in the first round of the women's singles by Slovakia's Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, 6-4, 6-2. However, partnering with Heather Watson in doubles, she reached the quarterfinals before losing to Italy's Sara Irrani and Jasmine Paolini, 6-3, 6-1.
Despite their setbacks, the couple have been supportive of each other and have shown their love on social media. De Minaur posted a picture of Boulter on his Instagram story on August 1, and wrote:
"Happy Birthday; Keep shining bright; Wish I could be there with you."
Alex de Minaur humorously recalled girlfriend Katie Boulter rejecting him
Alex de Minaur confessed that he faced rejection from Katie Boulter when he first asked her on a date, years ago. However, the couple started their relationship in March 2020 after de Minaur's perseverance led him to ask her out again.
De Minaur opened up about their relationship's origins in a chat with Tennis Channel's Nick Monroe in March 2024.
"Well, I guess everyone’s going to know this now… The first time I asked her out, she straight up said no. I asked her out for a coffee date, and she replied with no... That was tough to take, but being the persistent person that I am, I asked again and she said maybe. So we went with that, and here we are," De Minaur said during a chat at Taste of Tennis Miami.
Alex de Minaur and Katie Boulter have not confirmed their plans for the rest of the season, but they are expected to resume their training and prepare for the upcoming North American hard-court swing.