Bachelor Nation's Katie Thurston Reveals She and John Hersey Secretly Broke Up Before Public Split

Two months after announcing her breakup up with John Hersey, former Bachelorette star Katie Thurston shared some insight into what lead to the split.

By Ashley Joy Parker Aug 27, 2022 11:50 PMTags
Watch: "Bachelor" Star Katie Thurston Stands Up to Body Shamers

Breaking up on the DL.

Katie Thurston recently opened up about her split from John Hersey, revealing that the pair actually broke up long before fans found out this summer—and added that it wasn't a mutual decision.

"He dumped me," the Bachelor Nation star admitted to Kaitlyn Bristowe's while appearing the Off the Vine podcast. "Technically, we actually broke up twice. The first time no one knew about. I mean, obviously, our very close friends did. And maybe like a week or two, we kind of worked through it and decided to get back together, so I thought we were golden."

She continued, "I think it was just unavoidable. We just got on a conversation and at one point, I just said to him, ''I know more reasons why you don't like me than why you love me.' And that's a really s---ty feeling, you know?"

Katie, 31, said one of the "tipping-points" in their relationship was John, 28, pressuring her to take up surfing after she already took up skydiving for him.

photos
The Tangled Web of Bachelor Nation Contestants Who Have Dated

"I look at him and I go, 'You realize I jumped out of a f--king plane three times, twice solo, skydiving, to join him in his passions,'" she recalled. "Eight hours of ground school, all these things to partake in his passion, and somehow that was completely ignored and now we're focused on surfing? At that point, I knew nothing I did was going to ever be good enough."

E! News has reached out to John for comment and has not heard back.

Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images

Having been friends first, Katie said she is especially "confused" why not being into extreme sports wasn't discussed as a dealbreaker for John before becoming a couple.

"I was like, 'You knew who I was before we dated, so why is it that once we started dating, you started to question like, oh, I need someone who's this?'" she said. "Well I never said I was that. It just really caught me off guard and I just really put, like, all of my eggs in one basket with this man, and I don't want to say I regret it because I think every relationship is a lesson, but it was just a six months crash and burn."

Ultimately, Katie called getting dumped "a blessing in disguise," adding that, "I think I would have stuck it out a lot longer than I should have."

Katie and John announced their breakup in back in June, with the former Bachelorette writing on her Instagram Story, "Statement: no we aren't together." John also confirmed they "are no longer dating," noting "this decision was not made lightly, and it was obviously not an easy one to make."

Instagram

Now, along with Katie's decision to stay out of the ocean and the sky going forward, she has also chosen not stay friends with her ex after a few attempts to keep things cordial.

"When we broke up, we did all—us and our friends—go to a fair together and it was very fine, it was whatever," Katie said. "But then the more time apart, the more those things that were like, cute, and quirky, and fun, were more like, 'You're annoying the f--k out of me.'"

John and Katie met on her season of The Bachelorette in 2021. However, she sent him home week two and she ended up getting engaged to Blake Moynes. Katie and Blake announced their breakup in October, noting that while they were grateful for their time together they ultimately determined they were "not compatible as life partners."

One month later, she appeared to confirm her romance with John by sharing footage of him set to Taylor Swift's "Begin Again" as part of her "12 Days of Messy" sparking fan speculation that Katie may have cheated on Blake

Blake, 32, later commented on his ex moving on so quickly with John. When asked this past March on E!'s Daily Pop whether or not he thinks there was overlap between Katie's two relationships, Blake responded, "Emotionally, maybe."

He added, "I really don't believe there was anything physical...She's better than that."