Boris Becker admitted he “couldn’t stop crying” during his wedding to his third wife, Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro, after the couple tied the knot in a “unique” ceremony.
The former tennis player, 56, married the political risk manager, 33, during a three-day ceremony in Portofino, Italy, last week, with the stunning bride walking down the aisle to the tune of Coldplay’s hit song Yellow.
Speaking for the first time about his lavish nuptials, Boris said: Hello! Magazine that it was a ‘magical weekend’ marrying his partner Lilian, and they chose Portofino as their wedding venue after spending many happy weekends there together.
She said: “Everyone cried, including me… The place where we had the ceremony is, I think, one of the most unique places I have ever been in my life, and believe me, I have been to many beautiful places!”
The bride dazzled in an elegant strapless white gown designed by her former school friend, designer Andra Ravieli, to whom she had previously promised to design her wedding dress.
Boris Becker admitted he “couldn’t stop crying” during his wedding to third wife Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro, after the couple tied the knot in a “unique” ceremony
The former tennis player married the political risk manager during a three-day ceremony in Portofino last week, with the stunning bride walking down the aisle to the tune of Coldplay’s hit Yellow
Boris was joined by his two sons from his first marriage, Noah, 30, and Elias, 25, who acted as joint best men, and Boris said he was “very moved” by the speeches from his loved ones in an emotional toast after the ceremony.
Guests included former Dutch footballer Ruud Gullit and German actor and model Boris Kodjoe.
Lilian, who is 23 years his junior, has stood by Boris through thick and thin after he was jailed for two-and-a-half years in the UK after it was discovered he had hidden £2.5m in assets and loans in a bankruptcy fraud case.
But Boris said he believes their time behind bars has strengthened their relationship, adding: “As they say at wedding ceremonies, through good days and bad, you have to find a way to stay together.
“We certainly had some very difficult days because my personal situation was very complicated, but that was when I really met my true friends and my life partner.”
‘Sometimes you need to be tested to know who your real friends or partners are, and that happened to me. I realized who was with me and who wasn’t. Lilian was number one.’
Following the evening ceremony, the happy couple took to the dance floor for their first dance to Lionel Richie’s hit All Night Long, before dancing the night away with their guests.
Boris added that married life already feels “wonderful” and that the highlight of his big day was the chance to finally “call Lilian his wife.”
Speaking for the first time about his lavish wedding, Boris told Hello! magazine that it was a “magical weekend” marrying his partner Lilian
But Boris said he believes their time behind bars has strengthened their relationship, adding: “In good days and bad, you have to find a way to stay together.”
The happy couple added that while they are too busy to go on a honeymoon straight away, they are hoping to enjoy a trip over the Christmas period.
It was reported in February that the couple had gotten engaged and were planning their wedding for later that year.
Boris served eight months in Wandsworth and Huntercombe prisons before being deported from Britain in December 2022, ruling out a return to his BBC job commentating on Wimbledon.
However, he did contribute to Sky Italia’s coverage of the SW19 action over the summer. He had lived in the UK since 2012 and declared bankruptcy in 2017 before being jailed in April 2022.
Ms Monteiro, who lives in London, is a political risk analyst and holds three degrees, including a master’s degree in African studies from the School of Oriental and African Studies, and speaks five languages, including German, according to the German newspaper Bild.
She was born in the African island state of São Tomé and Príncipe and is the daughter of Victor Monteiro, the former defense minister of the republic who ran for president in 2014.
Lilian spent much of her youth in Rome, where she attended a private school before studying at La Sapienza University.
He first came to London to study at the School of Oriental and African Studies, where he obtained his master’s degree at the age of 25.
He reportedly proposed to Lilian at Milan Cathedral in 2021, but any hopes of a fairytale wedding were dashed by the looming prison sentence.
She was constantly present at his side as he attended court hearings and even blew him a goodbye kiss when he was jailed last year and criticised by a judge for showing no remorse.
After leaving prison, the couple, who lived in the United Kingdom, moved to Milan.
A source told The Sun: “Boris is incredibly grateful to Lilian for sticking with him during ‘the most difficult time’ of his life.”
He said: “She saved me and I will never forget her for that. She is the woman of my new life!”
Lilian, who is 23 years his junior, has stood by Boris through thick and thin after he was jailed for two and a half years in the UK (pictured in 2022)
Boris was married twice before. He married Barbara Feltus in 1993 and the couple had two children: a son, Noah, who was born in 1994, and a daughter, Elias, who was born in 1999.
In December 2000, the couple announced their separation. A year later, Becker was forced to admit that he was the father of Anna, the daughter of Russian model Angela Ermakova, following a legal battle in the Supreme Court.
In 2002, Boris was convicted of tax evasion and attempted tax evasion in Germany.
Seven years later, he announced that he was engaged to Dutch model Sharlely ‘Lilly’ Kerssenberg. In 2010, she gave birth to a son, Amadeus. They announced their separation in 2018.
