So it’s halftime at the Amway Center in Orlando, where the Magic is hosting the Miami Heat and beautiful basketball fan Elena believes she’s been selected at random from the sellout crowd to attempt a $20,000 half-court shot.
Sporting a giant smile, Elena is eating up the moment as she dribbles a few times, takes a running start (despite wearing a dress) and launches her shot at the basket. Sadly, it drops short of its mark, but Elena is undaunted. She continues to smile and wave at the crowd.
But wait, Elena’s 15 minutes of fame is going to last a bit longer. The announcer tells Elena she’s won a consolation prize. When she turns around, she sees her boyfriend, Eric, on the far side of the court on one knee with a ring in hand.
Overcome with emotion, Elena covers her face and walks slowly toward Eric. The teary-eyed Elena accepts his proposal. The couple embraces and the crowd goes crazy as the "Wedding March" plays on the PA system.
It’s hard to fathom, but Elena was the only one of 18,846 people in the arena who wasn’t in on the ruse. Eric had contacted the Orlando Magic management with his plan to deliver his epic proposal to Elena. The organization told Eric that they loved the idea. All he had to do was get Elena to the arena.
While Elena was attempting her shot, the Orlando Magic mascot, Stuff, held a sign telling the fans that what they were watching was not a contest, but a surprise marriage proposal. The sign also encouraged the crowd to keep the secret. “SSHHHH,” read the sign. The magical moment was shown live on the arena’s giant video scoreboard.
"It was just complete shock," Elena said on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” where the couple was invited to recount their special moment. "It was probably the most exciting thing that's ever happened to me in my life, so far."
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