Olympian Nicola Adams has announced she is expecting a baby with girlfriend Ella Baig after their fourth round of IVF treatment.
The 39-year-old, who was the first woman to win a boxing Olympic gold medal, said the couple started fertility treatment in 2019.
Speaking to Vogue Magazine, Adams revealed that Baig had suffered a miscarriage and two failed attempts at IVF before discovering the happy news “a few months ago”.
We’re so excited to announce that our family is expanding 🤍🕊After what feels like a lifetime, we can finally say we’re going to be parents! We’re so excited to share this magical journey with you all,the ups,the downs everything in between💫Welcome to the world little one 🪐 pic.twitter.com/BTLesRX12L
— Nicola Adams (@NicolaAdamsOBE) February 17, 2022
She said: “We decided that Ella would carry the baby, that we’d use my egg, and find a sperm donor that resembled Ella.
“The main hurdle was not knowing as much about IVF as we do now.
“Unbeknownst to us, Ella went through her first rounds of IVF with an underactive thyroid which can dramatically impact the chances of having a healthy pregnancy.
“Our first attempt failed and Ella had a miscarriage.”
The athlete revealed she was “really upset” after the couple had two more failed attempts at IVF before Baig discovered she was pregnant.
— British Vogue (@BritishVogue) February 17, 2022
Adams said: “Of course, we knew that there was a chance of it being unsuccessful, but it’s hard to see those two lines on a pregnancy test and feel elated before having that ripped from you just a few weeks later.
“I was also more upset for Ella as she was the one going through the process physically.
“You don’t really know what to say or do, you just have to be supportive.
“Then, a few months ago, we found out that Ella was pregnant again.
“She’s now in her second trimester. I’m so happy, but it’s also been emotional.
“We were worried about getting too excited because we’d miscarried before, but I think it’s really important that we try to enjoy it rather than dwelling on what could go wrong.”
Adams shared a picture of the baby’s ultrasound on Twitter, captioning it: “After what feels like a lifetime, we can finally say we’re going to be parents!
“We’re so excited to share this magical journey with you all the ups, the downs everything in between.”
The Olympian has said she believes there is still a “stigma” attached to the IVF process and a lack of parenting books for same-sex families and is determined to share her experiences.
She added: “The information is out there but we really had to dig for it. It shouldn’t be this hard to access.
“We hope that at least one person finds solace in our story.
“If you’re a same-sex couple going through this chapter of your lives, know that you’re not alone.”
Adams added that it feels “even more real” as Baig is beginning to show her baby bump and the couple are focused on getting their home ready and “learning as much as we can about parenthood”.