‘Bachelorette’ Stars Michelle Young and Nayte Olukoya End Engagement

The Bachelorette’s Michelle Young and Nayte Olukoya have ended their engagement after the pair’s romance was featured on the ABC dating show’s most recent season.

Both stars took to social media Friday to announce their breakup following Olukoya proposing to Young in the season finale that aired Dec. 21, 2021.

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“I’m struggling to say that Nayte and I will be going our 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,” Young, 29, posted to her Instagram Stories. She added that she is “deeply hurting and will need time and space to work through this heartbreak.”

Meanwhile, Olukoya wrote on his Stories, in part, “Michelle and I are going to move forward separately. Hearts are heavy, emotions are high, and we are dealing with this the best we can.”

During a previous interview with The Hollywood Reporter, the pair reflected on being the first Black couple to get engaged on either The Bachelor or The Bachelorette. “For us, it’s just so incredibly important that we were able to show so many people a Black love story,” Young said at the time. “In the past, there have been diverse castmembers, but those stories didn’t necessarily have the opportunity to be shown.”

The split means that the six most recent Bachelorette couples have all parted ways since their romances on the show. Rachel Lindsay and Bryan Abasolo, whose story was chronicled on the season that aired in 2017, are still together, while JoJo Fletcher, the Bachelorette prior to Lindsay, married her show pick, Jordan Rodgers, last month.

Rachel Recchia and Gabby Windey will share the spotlight as co-Bachelorettes on the upcoming season that premieres July 11 on ABC.

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