Love Is Alive In Olympic Village ... And Maybe On The Dating Apps, Too
I never used Tinder.
I was on other dating apps back in my single days, don't get me wrong — but never Tinder. I don't know why. That particular app always felt a little yucky. Like unsolicited dick pics and shame.
Joke's on me, though. Because from the stories I've heard over the years, I've learned there's plenty of that on other apps, too.
RELATED: Women Reveal Their Biggest Dating App Red Flags
(Getty Images)
But even though I never personally used Tinder, I still had an account.
Actually, I take that back. My best friends Chase and Ricky had an account — with my name and pictures on it. And when we went out of town (where no one knew me), they'd fire it up. Not to find me a date. I made it clear I wasn't meeting anybody. They did it purely for their own entertainment. And after a few beers, those conversations were pretty entertaining.
Chase and Ricky filled my Tinder profile with all of my old bikini competition photos and mentioned that I was only in town for a few days. It was like shooting fish in a barrel. Men really are simple creatures.
One time in Cincinnati, "Amber" matched with at least a dozen Bengals players.
That was par for the course. Because I'll tell you the one thing even more prevalent on dating apps than unsolicited dick pics and shame… professional athletes.
American Woman Matches With Athletes In Olympic Village
For the sake of my professional integrity, I'll go ahead and clarify that A) I did not work in sports media during this era of Tinder catfishing and B) My friends never asked anyone to meet up. They'd send a few silly messages, we'd all laugh, and that was it.
So don't get your knickers in a twist.
Plus, that's nothing compared to what this diabolical chick, Sofia, did. This 22-year-old TikToker realized she could change her location on Hinge (the best dating app — where I met my husband) to any location in the world. No GPS verification required.
So she set it to… Olympic Village.
Naturally, she came across a treasure trove of the greatest athletes in the world. Sofia later told The New York Post that she matched with a few Olympians but "instantly hit it off" with one in particular.
Sofia claimed that this particular match took home the "first gold medal" for Team USA. And I'm not sure why she was being so secretive about it in the video because she tagged him in the caption.
Or did she?
The first U.S. gold medal in the Paris Olympics went to swimmer Bobby Finke. But she tagged Hunter Armstrong in the video. So either Sofia is misinformed or she's trying to throw us off the scent! (I'm leaning toward the first one.)
But after that video got tens of millions of views, she followed it up with a lengthy tutorial — just in case you, too, want to match on a dating app with an Olympic athlete.
"'But how do I find an Olympian?’ you ask," Sofia said. "It’s simple: Olympians are kinda like vegans. You don’t have to ask, they will tell you."
Imagine how mad all these Olympians are right now. Here they are just looking for a quick hook-up in Paris — maybe hoping to put those cartoon hat condoms and "anti-sex beds" to the test — and instead they're just chatting with a bunch of thirsty women in Oklahoma.
But hey, that's why airplanes exist.
"If all goes well, flights to Paris are really cheap right now," Sofia said. "For only $300, you can be with your match and see their cardboard bed in person."
Too bad the Olympics are over in a few days. But hey, single folks, now you have time to plan your strategy for the 2026 Winter Games. I hear Italy is lovely.
Let's open the mailbag.
Anthony C. Learned A Lot About Women's Clothing
Last week, I shared some expert advice on how to purchase lingerie for your significant other — if she's into that sort of thing. I interviewed 90 Day Fiancé star Molly Hopkins, who is the longtime owner of LiviRae Lingerie in Kennesaw, Ga.
READ: From Cotton Nightgowns To Leather And Lace: A Man's Guide To Buying Lingerie For Women
Anthony writes:
Great article on lingerie sizing etc. Seems like a lot of work to "get it in" lmao. I guess I am a bit old school.
Amber:
Fellas, you would be shocked by how uncomfortable and difficult women's clothing can be. "Pain is beauty," they say. And whoever "they" is, they ain't lying.
A couple of hundred years ago, women wore corsets so tight that they would frequently pass out on their little Victorian couches. And now, Kim Kardashian makes SKIMS.
Same difference.
Illustration of new technology shows a woman being tightly laced into her corset by a winding machine.
(Photo by SSPL/Getty Images)
Dean From Wisconsin Brings The Wisdom
I learned 30 years ago after I had married my wife to just stay away from buying her lingerie without her involvement, let alone most clothing. My advice is: DON’T!
If my wife wants any article of clothing from me for her birthday, our anniversary, or Christmas, she either orders it herself and I just give her the cash to cover the cost. Or she specifically tells me what to buy, including which color / style and size, and I buy it, making sure to keep the receipt handy.
This keeps me in her good graces — happy wife, happy life!
Amber:
Very good call, Dean. Molly suggested going with your partner to buy lingerie as opposed to surprising her, and that is great advice for regular clothing, too.
At some point in the evolution of women's fashion, some asshole was like, "I have an idea: How about none of the sizing makes sense? Instead of using actual measurements like we do for men, we'll just assign arbitrary numbers. And let's make sure none of those numbers are actually consistent from brand to brand!"
I'm not a historian, but I'm certain that's what happened.
The moral of the story, guys, is that we women don't even know our own sizes. So there's certainly no hope for you to try to figure it out, either.
Brittney Is Way Better Off
Loved the lingerie column (and "90 Day Fiancé" …I remember Molly!) My ex didn't have much of a sex drive, so one time for his birthday I bought some lingerie. Nothing crazy, just a lacy bodysuit, and I had it on when he came home from work.
He LAUGHED AT ME and told me "What are you wearing that for? You look ridiculous." I felt like such an idiot.
PS… I found out later he had a BAD porn addiction. I told him if he didn't get help, I would leave. He made his choice, and it wasn't me.
Amber:
Imagine preferring to diddle yourself over having sex with an actual woman. What a loser.
If a MAN (because men are horny all the time) is never interested in sex with his wife/girlfriend, I'd be willing to bet — 9.9 times out of 10 — he's either cheating or addicted to porn. I'm leaving that other 0.1% to allow for legitimate medical issues.
I've mentioned more than once in this column that I am firmly anti-porn. I don't believe there's room for it in a healthy relationship, and this is a perfect example of what happens when it's taken to the extreme.
Brittney, don't let that fool discourage you. And hang on to that bodysuit — plenty of men would be happy to take it off of you.
Happy Ending
While some Olympians were swiping on dating apps (shoutout to either Bobby Finke or Hunter Armstrong), others were signing a lifetime deal. So far, there have been a whopping FIVE Olympic athlete engagements during the Paris (The City of Love) Games.
Huang Ya Qiong and Liu Yuchen (China — Badminton)
Payton Otterdahl (USA — Shotput) and Maddy Nilles
Sarah Steyaert & Charline Picon (France — Skiff)
These two didn't get engaged to each other. Rather, they are teammates. And after winning the bronze medal, both of their boyfriends proposed.
Justin Best (USA — Rowing) & Lainey Duncan
Five Olympic rings, five engagement rings. Congrats to the happy couples!
And eat your heart out, Sofia from TikTok.
Womansplaining is a weekly column about dating, marriage, sex and relationships that runs on Wednesdays.
Email your thoughts, questions, stories and gripes to Amber.Harding@OutKick.com or tweet her @TheAmberHarding.