Olympic figure skaters Adam Rippon and Mirai Nagasu are besties, and it turns out that they have a special token to signify that bond: matching tattoos.
According to Popsugar, the two Olympians were devastated when they didn’t make the U.S. Winter Olympics team four years ago, and were eating In-N-Out burgers and watching the Sochi Opening Ceremony when Rippon brought up the idea of getting matching tattoos.
“We sat on the roof,” Rippon told Yahoo Sports at the 2018 Winter Olympics. “And we were just kind of talking, we weren’t even watching the Olympics. We were just kind of crying a little bit, and eating [In-N-Out] double-doubles and animal-style fries.”
“We were sitting up there, and we were laying back, we looked up at the sky and the stars, and we had a long talk. I remember telling her, ‘I’m so grateful you’re my friend,’” Rippon added.
It was that night that Rippon brought up getting matching tattoos. Rippon told Nagasu that she could choose the design for their friendship tattoos.
“After everything that we went through four years ago, I said, ‘I want to have a matching tattoo with you,’” Rippon recalled. “You pick what it is, and I’ll get whatever you want.”
According to Popsugar, the two friends were joking about getting the Abercrombie moose, but ultimately decided on a different design.
“Finally, she found this little symbol and it’s a circle with two lines through it, and it’s a glyph that means power,” Rippon told the reporter.
Rippon’s tattoo is on his inner thigh near his kneecap, and Nagasu’s is on her wrist. Rippon, who told Yahoo Sports that he has “seven or nine” tattoos, got his tattoo done in white ink to match the rest of his tattoos, and Nagasu did the same.
“It’s something really personal between me and her,” Rippon said. “There’s been a lot of ups and downs since then. To be here now, especially with her of all people, is crazy.”
This is the ultimate sign of friendship, and it’s so adorable to see Rippon gush over his friendship with Nagasu. We’ll definitely be cheering for these two Olympians at the Winter Olympics, and cheering their friendship on after the closing ceremony.