Kaitlyn Bristowe and Jason Tartick announced the end of their engagement on Aug. 6, 2023, to the chagrin of many fans, and the Bachelorette season 11 lead has given some insight into the reasons behind their split.
In the Aug. 15 episode of her podcast Off the Vine with Kaitlyn Bristowe, the reality star shared with her guest, BFF Lo VonRumpf, that the split has been really respectful and amicable. “I’ve never respected someone more through a breakup than I do with Jason,” she revealed. “I think people assume if people break up, something bad happened. And I think that’s the hardest part of this whole breakup is nothing bad happened. It’s just been over time, we have both not made each other a priority and this is what happens.”
“We both are so sad,” she continued. “And we both don’t know what the future holds.” Bristowe said there were no “sides” to take in the split and family, friends, and fans could support both Bachelorette alums on their own journeys. “You don’t have to choose sides — root for us both to be happy and grow and learn.”
“It’s sad. We are both so sad,” she added tearfully. “You know, you think you’re gonna spend your life with somebody … because we’re grieving a loss.” She revealed that Tartick was living down the street and they would be sharing their dogs, Ramen and Pinot, and seeing each other regularly. The Bachelorette alum said she was hopeful that people could trust the decision that she and Tartick had made to end their relationship.
During her podcast episode, Bristowe also hinted that the door is still slightly ajar with Tartick, and that they might find their way back to each other in the future. She explained that they might learn with time and space that it was the right decision to split, but they might also find out that they want to commit to each other after all. “But we haven’t been choosing each other,” she shared, which is what led to the split. “I do need to choose myself. And I want him to choose himself. The right person is going to choose each other — you’re gonna prioritize each other, and we just haven’t been.”
Tartick and Bristowe began dating in early 2019 after Tartick asked her out during an episode of her podcast. They got engaged in 2021, and had been going strong until they announced their split in Aug. 2023. In an Instagram Story posted after they announced their breakup, Tartick wrote that he was “forever grateful” to have had Bristowe in his life, Page Six reported.