Olympian Justin speaks Philly-centered wedding 1 year after live-TV suggestions (exclusive)

“I have the gold and the girl,” said Rower Justin best on Today Show a year ago, after a surprise proposal to her long -standing girlfriend Lainey Duncan.

Best, 27, had just won a gold medal for Team USA in Paris in the men’s four events – the first gold for the United States in 60 years – and when he celebrated the performance with his teammates on national television, he decided it was the perfect time to get down on one knee.

“Paris is her favorite city. And I am, if you are going to do something, do it right, do it big and wait for the Paris Olympics Games, ”says best about the proposal.

Almost a year later, their lives have changed – Best and Duncan live in Alameda, California, with increased fame – he held the starting speech this year on their Alma Mater Drexel – and the two are now planning his wedding.

While wedding planning has been an effort from both Best and Duncan, as well as professional planners, it has been especially practical for Duncan, a designer for Marine Layer.

“I’ve been working on doing Justin’s suit for the day, so I’ve sewn like a madman,” says Duncan, who also designed his own dress for their engagement shooting Philadelphia Magazine In May.

The couple, who have been together since they met at their high school’s production of West Side StoryGrowing up on Kennett Square, PA outside Philadelphia. And while they are now west coast bores, they will add their wedding with lots of city with brotherly love energy.

Best and Duncan will get married at the end of October in a vintage-inspired ceremony at Fairmount Water Works, which overlooks Philadelphia’s famous boat house line where “We actually took promotions” in 2016, says Duncan.

It is also the best competed in Regattas throughout high school and trained every day at College – all of his Olympic origin history.

If the picturesque location from Filadelfia’s largest landmarks does not add enough Philly elements, catering also has a regional nod. “I’m a sucker for a soft pretzel,” Duncan said with a grin.

The same goes for the music in the wedding, “I imagine, okay, there is a calm in the dance floor. How do we get people back out? Rocky,” Best said.

Duncan explains how their signature wedding color, a deep green, fits the ceremony: “Our wedding is very romantic and vintage”, so good, a huge Philly Sports Fan clocks in, “And if you want to choose the interpretation it can be” go birds “.”

Suitably he predicts an “eagles” chant will happen, “at least once.”

In addition to the location, another red element comes in the day in the form of an Olympic reunion.

“If everything goes right, it will be the first time all four of us: Nick (Mead), Michael (Grady) and Liam (Corrigan) and I myself will be together in a room since the Olympics,” says Best and refers to their crewmates from The 2024 Olympic victory.

The couple also integrates rowing – best first picked up with their parents’ encouragement after they looked at The social network -In in their welcome party before the ceremony, which will be Henley Royal Regatta theme.

Those with rowing blazers will be encouraged to appear in their most crews theme ensembles. “I’m glad to see all the adorned,” Duncan told People.

After the wedding and honeymoon – at Maui Four Seasons there White lotus Season 1 was filmed thanks to a charity auction that best won in May – another event in the future calls some of Best’s attention.

Although no official decisions about 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles Has the done and wedding and his San Francisco-based jobs in investment banks are the priorities right now-brudum that tells people that he can return to another shot on gold.

“Having a strong American rowing team in our home country’s home water is very appealing to me.”