Current:Home > MyOlympian Madeline Musselman Details Husband’s Support Amid His Stage 4 Lung Cancer Diagnosis-InfoLens
Olympian Madeline Musselman Details Husband’s Support Amid His Stage 4 Lung Cancer Diagnosis
View Date:2024-12-23 16:47:38
Madeline Musselman has her biggest cheerleader by her side while she goes for the gold in Paris.
The U.S. women’s water polo player is currently competing at the 2024 Olympics—an event that her husband Pat Woepse shared he was determined to be present for months after being diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.
“There [are] fears and doubts that creep in,” Madeline, who met Pat in 2022, told NBC Los Angeles. “But I don't think they possess my mind all the time. And I think our faith is a huge part of that.”
Shortly after learning of Pat’s diagnosis, which as he explained, is rare due to the specific mutation, the couple decided to get married as soon as possible.
“All the people that came together to make it happen within four days,” Madeline shared of their October 2023 nuptials, “it was pretty crazy. We had flowers. We had a church that welcomed us with open arms to marry us. It was just a perfect weekend.”
After their wedding, Madeline began her Olympic training, but noted that there were instances she wanted to hold off to support Pat—also an athlete who even once swam across the English Channel—through his chemotherapy treatments.
“But he’s like, ‘No, you have to go to practice,’” she shared. “Obviously I want him to know that I’m there, but yeah, it’s been hard.”
“This was my biggest goal, with everything being so unknown,” he told the outlet shortly after her game July 31. “So pretty emotional, emotional day for me. Couldn’t be more thrilled to be here to support Maddie and the team.”
And though they kept some details of Pat’s health journey private, Madeline shared they decided to open up about their life as a way to connect with others.
“We're sharing our story not for people to feel sorry for us or feel bad for what we're going through,” she noted. “If anything, it's for inspiration and that you can get to the other side of things with the people that are right next to you, we hope for that.”
(E! News and NBC News are part of the NBCUniversal family.)
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News AppveryGood! (6)
Related
- The Best Gifts for People Who Don’t Want Anything
- Taylor Swift, Beyoncé, Kim Kardashian and more celebrities spotted at the Super Bowl
- The best and worst Super Bowl commercials of 2024: Watch this year's outlier ads
- Usher's Daughter Sovereign, 3, Makes Cute Acting Debut in Music Video
- Tony Hinchcliffe refuses to apologize after calling Puerto Rico 'garbage' at Trump rally
- Dakota Johnson Bares All in Sheer Crystal Dress for Madame Web Premiere
- The Relatable Lesson Tay and Taylor Lautner Learned In Their First Year of Marriage
- 14 Movies, TV Shows and More to Indulge in If You Are Anti-Valentine's Day
- Fighting conspiracy theories with comedy? That’s what the Onion hopes after its purchase of Infowars
- 'Choco Taco' resurrected through Taco Bell, Salt & Straw partnership, brands reveal
Ranking
- Duke basketball vs Kentucky live updates: Highlights, scores, updates from Champions Classic
- Winter storm targets Northeast — here's how much snow is in the forecast
- Senate passes $95.3 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan after rare all-night session
- Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp sets the stage to aid Texas governor’s border standoff with Biden
- Lions find way to win, Bears in tough spot: Best (and worst) from NFL Week 10
- The best Taylor Swift lyrics, era by era, to soundtrack your romantic Valentine's Day
- Ex-Illinois senator McCann’s fraud trial delayed again, but drops plan to represent himself
- A Florida earthquake? Really? Initial skepticism gives way to science. Here's why
Recommendation
-
Lady Gaga Joins Wednesday Season 2 With Jenna Ortega, So Prepare to Have a Monster Ball
-
The Daily Money: Older workers are everywhere. So is age discrimination
-
Boy, 15, charged with murder in the fatal shooting of 3 people at an Arkansas home
-
Horoscopes Today, February 13, 2024
-
Sister Wives’ Kody Brown Explains His Stance on His Daughter Gwendlyn Brown’s Sexuality
-
Hallmark's When Calls the Heart galvanized an online community of millions, called Hearties
-
Hiker kills coyote with his bare hands after attack; tests confirm the animal had rabies
-
An Oregon resident was diagnosed with the plague. Here are a few things to know about the illness