boomerrphelps/Instagram(NEW YORK) — Michael Phelps and Nicole Johnson revealed last week that they had secretly married earlier in the year.
Phelps and his new bride posted pictures from the wedding, which took place in June, to their respective Instagram accounts. Johnson said it was the “happiest day of my life.”
Before the news broke, Phelps spoke with ABC News about fatherhood and life with his two loves — his 5-month-old son Boomer and his wife Nicole.
“It’s definitely not cake. It’s definitely not easy that for sure,” Phelps said about being a dad to his son, who he welcomed with Johnson in May.
“[But] being able to welcome a healthy, beautiful baby boy into the world is something that changed my life,” he continued. “I think you really find the true definition of what love is when you have a child.”
Phelps, 31, finished his swimming career at the 2016 Olympics in Rio, winning five more gold medals and one silver, to bring his total gold medal count to 23. But, he’s also excited for his life after leaving the pool behind.
“Being back and having Nicole and Boomer, practically every day by my side, being able to watch him grow and being able to learn from him is very special,” he said. “It is challenging at times, trying to figure out what he wants and what he needs. [Like] in the middle of the night, he wakes up at 2, 3 a.m. … he just wants food, it’s an amazing experience though to watch him grow into his personality and show it more every day.”
Phelps had been engaged to the former Miss California USA since February 2015. He also teased in a Facebook live chat last week that “Baby number two may be coming soon. Who knows, though?”
The Olympic legend spoke to ABC News as part of his involvement with this year’s QuickBooks Connect conference held in San Jose, California. This marked the third year the event brought together tech and business enthusiasts to listen to some of the biggest names in sports, entertainment and business.
The inspiring event was the biggest yet, with Intuit breaking it into two days with the likes of Phelps, Shaq and Simone Biles all speaking.
“I always talk about my career, there were times when of course I didn’t want to do it or a small bump in the road, through those ups and downs, it’s obviously a struggle, for me, I was able to find those right people to surround myself with to get through those tough times and help me get back on track,” Phelps told ABC News before going on stage. “If you look at the Olympics this year and two years ago, I probably would have said it’s pretty damn hard to do what I did this summer, for me being able to go through some life changing experiences, kind of dig deep, finishing how exactly I wanted to.”
Phelps has spoken before about his first attempt to retire in 2012, when he wasn’t on good terms with the sport.
“I wanted nothing to do with the sport,” he said about the 2012 London Olympics, where he won four gold medals. “I felt like I was being forced to really finish my career … taking a year and a half, two years off, to come back and find that passion again … it’s a dream come true … I’m more at peace now.”
“I’m ready to move forward, the next goal, the next chapter,” he added, including that will include work with his foundation, among other business ventures.
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