Olympic figure skating champions Chris and Alexa Knierim are expecting their first child. The couple, who are also married, shared the exciting news on Sunday, March 16, via a heartfelt Instagram post. Alexa, 33, revealed that they are expecting a baby boy, who is 23 weeks along. She also shared that they used in vitro fertilization (IVF) to begin their family.
In the Instagram post, Alexa wrote, “Our baby boy is 23 weeks along! We are eagerly anticipating the joyful moments that await us, and included the hashtags “#ivfbaby” and “#july,” hinting at their son’s due date.
The couple posted pictures from a beach setting, where they shared a kiss while Alexa rested her hand on her baby bump. Chris, 37, wore a navy blue polo and khaki shorts, while Alexa wore a white and blue floral dress, highlighting her pregnancy glow. She also wore an Olympic logo necklace, adding a personal touch to her maternity look.
The Knierims, who won a bronze medal for Team USA in the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics, began skating together in 2012 and started dating shortly after. Chris proposed in 2014, and they married in June 2016 in Colorado Springs, Colo., with their former coach, Dalilah Sappenfield, officiating. Olympic skaters Ashley Wagner and Adam Rippon attended their wedding.
In 2018, the Knierims became the first married couple to compete together in the Winter Olympics since Jenni Meno and Todd Sand in 1998. They were the only American pairs team in the 2018 Olympics in South Korea. Although they retired from competitive skating in 2020, the pair won two national titles together and were also Olympic alternates in Sochi.
Alexa has been open about her health struggles, particularly a rare gastrointestinal condition that she battled leading up to her wedding. The illness required three surgeries, and she lost a significant amount of weight. At one point, she weighed just 80 pounds. Despite the challenges, Alexa has said that the experience helped her and Chris grow stronger as a couple.
“It was a hard year, but it made us grow in ways I don’t think we could have if we didn’t go through the traumatic experience that we did,” Alexa shared in 2018.
Chris added, “Everything that we went through, that helped strengthen our relationship together.”
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