Not all breakup statements are created equally, but the Bachelor Nation splits are adding up in 2022. Bachelor in Paradise season 7 pair Maurissa Gunn and Riley Christian were the first couple to call it quits this year.
“We have decided to go our separate ways. Never did we imagine this, but we’ve come to a point where we both need to work on ourselves,” their joint statement, released in January, read. “We’ve appreciated everyone’s love and support so far throughout our journey and we just ask that you please respect our privacy as we navigate through this.”
Gunn, who moved to New York City for her romance with Christian, has since implied that their split wasn’t as amicable as it seemed.
“Make sure you’re compatible with how you want to raise kids, how you want to have family, things like that, where you want to live. I made the mistake by trying to sacrifice everything going into it for love,” she said on the “Almost Famous” podcast in April. “But I mean, I don’t think it was really a sacrifice — when you’re in love, that’s what you do. … I’m still questioning it myself.”
In June, two Bachelorettes went through breakups. Michelle Young and Nayte Olukoya announced on June 17 that they called off their engagement.
“I’m struggling to say that Nayte and I will be going out separate ways but I stand with him in knowing the heaviness that is present in both our hearts as this relationship has been very real for us,” the teacher wrote via Instagram Stories. “To you, Nayte, you quickly became my best friend and the love I have for you is incredibly strong. I will never stop wanting to see you succeed.”
Olukoya added at the time, “Michelle and I are going to move forward separately. Hearts are heavy, emotions are high and we are dealing with this the best way we can.”
The twosome’s proposal aired on the season 18 finale of The Bachelorette in December 2021. The previous lead, Katie Thurston, went through a split of her own the same month as Young — but declined to offer much information about ending her relationship with John Hersey at the time.
“Statement: No, we aren’t together,” Thurston wrote via Instagram Stories on June 20.
Thurston and Hersey started seeing each other in November 2021, one month after the season 17 star ended her engagement to winner Blake Moynes.
Scroll through for more on the 2022 Bachelor Nation breakups: