After weeks of speculation, it has been confirmed that Chris Soules and his fiancée Whitney Bischoff have split up. The breakup came two months after the season 19 finale of "The Bachelor' wherein Soules, 33, picked Bischoff, 29, over finalist Becca Tilley.
"Whitney Bischoff and Chris Soules have mutually and amicably decided to end their engagement," the couple told Us Weekly in a joint statement published on Thursday, May 28. "They part with nothing but respect and admiration for one another and will continue to be supportive friends. They wish to thank everyone who has supported them through this journey."
When the dating show concluded, Soules joined season 20 of "Dancing With the Stars." Since the first week, Bischoff was always a part of the audience, supporting Soules as he advanced on in the competition week after week. However, rumors of a breakup started sparking when Bischoff was nowhere to be seen during Soules' last two weeks on the show. The rumors got even worse when Soules explained his fiancee's absence, telling Glamour magazine that she went home because she was visiting family and that he was basically "non-existent" to her. In subsequent interviews, he clarified that Bischoff went home because it was the death anniversary of her mother.
One week after Soules was eliminated from "DWTS," Bischoff reunited with him on his farm in Iowa and the farmer even shared pictures of them on Instagram.
A day after they called off their engagement, both Soules and Bischoff went on social media to thank their supporters.
Soules tweeted, "I can't thank you all enough for the kind messages over the past few days. This has been really tough and your support means a lot to me."
On the same day, Bischoff posted a black and white video of a little girl welcoming her back to Chicago and captioned it, "Now this little gal knows how to make me smile! From the bottom of my heart, thank you for your outpouring love, kindness, and support! It means so much to me!"
Us Weekly reports that since their split, Bischoff has returned to Chicago while Soules stayed in Iowa for planting season.
