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Valerie and Gabriel (both 31), who have been family friends since childhood through their parents and church, were married in a small Mormon ceremony at Temple View in Hamilton.
A forecast of thunderstorms had threatened the day, but the sun shone bright for the young couple as they celebrated their union with 30 loved ones outside the temple and posed for photos for Woman’s Day, which appear in a special edition going on sale from today.
“This is even more amazing than winning an Olympic gold medal,” Valerie told Woman’s Day after her wedding on Saturday, April 2. “I feel like a taken woman and I’m so excited and I’m ecstatic – there’s no other way to describe it.”
Valerie looked stunning on her wedding day in a white full-length silk-satin and lace gown designed by Auckland designer John Zimmermann, and Gabriel wore a black suit and bow-tie. The bride held a bouquet of white roses, and Gabriel had a matching single white rosebud in his lapel.
The young couple were later joined by 250 family and friends for a colourful wedding reception at SkyCity in Auckland, where they exchanged rings and celebrated with dining, dancing and cultural ceremonies well into the night.
Valerie and Gabriel, a computer network engineer, started dating in 2014, and in January announced their engagement via Twitter with a photo of a diamond engagement ring.
After the wedding celebrations, four-time world champion shot-putter Valerie’s focus will be straight back to work, returning to training on Monday. Valerie is heading to Brazil in August in the hope of a third successive Olympic gold medal, and her new husband will be joining her there.
Woman’s Day Editor-in-Chief Sido Kitchin said, “Valerie Adams has brought New Zealand such pride and joy with her incredible international success – her radiant smile in victory has touched us all. It’s wonderful to know she’s found such personal happiness too. It’s an honour to share her wedding to Gabriel in Woman’s Day.”
See the full exclusive wedding album and read all about Valerie and Gabriel’s beautiful love story in Woman’s Day, on sale in Auckland today, the rest of the North Island on Monday and the South Island on Tuesday.
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