Bronte Campbell has revealed she broke the unusual diamond engagement ring she received from fiancé Benfield Lainchbury, joking that she ‘might need some help wedding planning’ after the distressing incident.
The winner of four Olympic gold medals in the pool, Campbell said ‘the easiest yes of my life’ when Lainchbury popped the question as they enjoyed a boat trip in Venice last August.
She got a stunning east-west set, emerald-cut diamond on a gold band – but the ring broke recently, forcing her to get it not just repaired, but redesigned to guard against another jewellery malfunction.
Campbell revealed the episode to her followers in an Instagram video in which she saw the lighter side of the disruption to her wedding planning.
‘So how’s the wedding planning going?’ she wrote over vision of her celebrating straight after the engagement in Venice.
‘Step 1: get engaged. Step 2: be completely in love with your ring.
Bronte Campbell is pictured sporting the unique diamond ring her fiancé Benfield Lainchbury (pictured together) gave her when he proposed last August
The Olympian (pictured with Lainchbury) fell in love with her east-west set, emerald-cut diamond on a gold band
However, Campbell has revealed she broke the treasured piece of jewellery recently
‘Step 3: break your ring.
‘Step 4: get Rhys to redesign your ring based on your active lifestyle.
‘Step 4: fall in love with new ring.
‘To recap: 2 x rings made. O x wedding decisions made. 1 x hair colour change. 7 x months later.’
The happy couple holidayed in Europe after the 2024 Paris Olympic Games, where Bronte brought home a gold medal in the women’s 4 x 100m relay final for Australia.
That gave her four of the priceless gold medals, but it was the new diamond that had everyone talking after her big announcement.
‘What a week celebrating all that’s happened and all the exciting things to come. Love you @ieldbenf. Easiest yes of my life,’ Bronte captioned the post, which featured a carousel of cute couples pics, including a close-up of the ring and the moment straight after the proposal.
The other two photos show her in a yellow sundress planting a kiss on her boyfriend’s cheek and a beautiful garden table setting for a meal the couple enjoyed on their travels.
Campbell saw the lighter side of the distressing incident – and revealed how her redesigned ring looks now (pictured)
The four-time Olympic gold medallist (pictured) said her cherished engagement band had to be re-done based on her ‘active lifestyle’
The engagement news was met with an outpouring of love from friends, family, and fellow athletes.
‘YEAHHHHH THE POST WE ALL WANTED,’ fellow Olympic swimmer Lani Pallister commented, punctuating her sentence with a crying emoji.
Swimmer Shayna Jack added: ‘Congratulations to you both.’
Bronte and her fiancé have known each other since childhood and Benfield has been by the swimmer’s side since they began dating in 2016.
He played a pivotal part in the swimmer’s decision to return to the pool after an 18-month break following the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
Clocking up on average 19,000 strokes a week in the water was physically and mentally damaging — and her paltry $30,000 a year as a full-time athlete didn’t help either.
After Bronte landed a role as a senior consultant at leading accounting and professional services firm Ernst & Young just over two years ago, she felt her pool days were finally over.
But after 18 months away from the sport — which allowed a ‘broken’ Bronte to rest her severe shoulder, neck, back and hip injuries — the lure of a fourth Games has proven to be irresistible.
With the support of her partner, she began swimming again and heading down the rigorous path that has now resulted in her fourth gold medal.
‘The decision to come back… when you look at all the consequences that go with that: moving, the impact on my relationship, the impact on finances, the impact on my job… it was huge,’ she said.
