A promise fulfilled: Why it took so long for Michelle Yeoh and long-time paramour Jean Todt to get hitched

KUALA LUMPUR, June 30 — It was a romance that spanned nearly two decades and crossed continents, but when Oscar-winning actress Tan Sri Michelle Yeoh and former Ferrari racing executive Jean Todt finally tied the knot in 2023, fans around the world celebrated. Now, Todt is opening up about why it took the couple 19 years to say "I do."

In a candid recent interview on the YouTube programme Jin Xing Official, the 80-year-old Frenchman revealed that the lengthy wait wasn't due to cold feet, but rather a calendar constantly full.

"A few weeks after we got together, we were already committed," Todt explained. "I already asked her to marry me, but she was busy and so was I."

The couple first crossed paths in Shanghai, China, on June 4, 2004, and got engaged less than two months later. But with Yeoh's globe-trotting film career and Todt's high-octane role in the world of motorsport – including his tenure as Ferrari's team principal and later president of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) – finding time for a wedding proved challenging.

They eventually exchanged vows in an intimate ceremony in Geneva, Switzerland, on July 27, 2023 – a date that marked 6,992 days since they first met.

But their marriage was more than just a personal milestone; it was a promise kept. Todt shared that the couple had made a pledge to Yeoh's late father, Datuk Yeoh Kian Teik, who passed away in 2014, that they would one day marry.

"Her father was an unbelievable person whom I loved," Todt said warmly. "We promised we would get married, and we did."

Throughout the interview, Todt, who now serves as the United Nations' special envoy for road safety, spoke with obvious affection about his wife, reflecting on their enduring partnership. He also noted that on April 30 this year, the couple celebrated another significant milestone: 8,000 days since that fateful meeting in Shanghai.

What began as a chance encounter in China has become one of entertainment and sport's most enduring love stories – proving that for some, the best things in life are truly worth the wait.