Andy Lee reveals why he and Hamish Blake are banned from the Olympics for life - and shares new details about his engagement

Hamish Blake and Andy Lee are known for going above and beyond to pull off a gag – but there was one time their extreme efforts were not exactly appreciated.

The Hundred host Andy appeared on Triple M's The Rush Hour with Liesel, Liam and Dobbo in July 2024, where he explained why he and Hamish were banned from the Olympic Village... for life.

Catch up on the latest episodes of The Hundred with Andy Lee on 9Now.

During the Olympic Games in London 2012, Hamish and Andy were invited to speak to Australia's athletes.

Unsurprisingly, getting into the Olympic Village requires a lot of security checks. Andy said they had provided all the paperwork and documents required, but there was one small problem.

"When we arrived, someone who filled out the form put my birth date as that day's date," he explained.

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"I said 'I didn't slip out of my mum and run straight here to speak to the Olympians, it's obviously a clerical error' and they wouldn't allow it."

Instead, Hamish and Andy devised another way to sneak in.

"I won't name who but someone on the team said, 'Hey, I can bring an outfit out, you look a little bit like one of the high jumpers,' … and suddenly I went through on someone else's [pass] and we snuck in, which is obviously a huge breach of security in a time where they're trying to prove that security was tight."

They were caught as they were preparing to leave – and nearly caused serious consequences for Prime Minister Julia Gillard.

"It was about 90 minutes later after we'd spoken to the Olympic team that [they] caught up with us and they dragged us and put us in separate rooms and there was a lot of interrogation," Andy recalled.

"They said that they would remove every single visitor pass for the entire campaign for the Australian Olympic team, including the Prime Minister who was arriving the next day.

"So while we were very proud of ourselves initially we were beginning to feel really bad about it."

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Thankfully, an Australian in high places came to their rescue.

"The head of security came in and went, 'Hamish and Andy, what are you guys doing here?' and he was Australian, and we explained, he was more understanding... Our Prime Minister was allowed back, apparently they loosened [a visitor ban] after a day and we had to agree to be banned for life."

It comes as Andy told another radio show, Nova 100's Jase & Lauren, new details about his proposal to long-term partner Rebecca Harding.

Andy revealed where he kept the ring in preparation for the right moment.

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"I had it in my car when I picked it up one day, and then I had to go to a meeting at a cafe. I parked outside the cafe so I could see the car, but then to see the car, it was in a loading zone, so if I get towed!' Andy recounted.

"So then in the middle of the meeting, I ran back out and moved the car out of sight. But I was just petrified that the ring was just sitting in the car!"

Thankfully, the ring – and Andy's car! – remained safe, with Andy popping the question in May 2024 at the Ravenswood property he and Bec are currently renovating together.

You can also catch up on latest episodes of The Hundred with Andy Lee for free on 9Now.

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