What Olivia Culpo's Exes Have Said About Her
Olivia Culpo has come a long way since being crowned Miss Universe in 2012. She has become a social media influencer, a business owner, a Sports Illustrated model, a reality star, and a proud dog mom to her toy golden doodle, Oliver Sprinkles, who has more Instagram followers than most people. And it's not only her hectic work life keeping Culpo busy; she's set to walk down the aisle after getting engaged to San Francisco 49ers player Christian McCaffrey in April 2023.
Culpo wasn't always keen on being forever romantically involved with a sports star. She has quite a history with athletes when it comes to her dating life, which includes other NFL players. Talking to ET about breaking her vow so that she would give McCaffrey a shot, she shared, "He's just the best, I feel like he is really everything that I could ever ask for. So I never have to worry about anything. I think that was the reason why I didn't want to date an athlete, no offense because there is a reputation there." So, as she's prepared to say, "I do," to the star NFL running back, let's take a deep dive at who Cuplo's other exes are and what they've had to say about dating the pageant queen.
Ryan Lochte gushed over Olivia Culpo
Olivia Culpo had a big year in 2012. After winning Miss Rhode Island the year before (her first-ever pageant), she represented her home state in the Miss USA pageant and ultimately took home the crown. That December, Culpo won Miss Universe representing the United States.
Before Culpo was crowned Miss Universe, she made headlines with a rumored romance with an Olympian. Culpo and Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte were spotted together on two separate occasions in the same month, which clearly means they're dating, right? During an interview with E! News, Lochte shared some nice words about Culpo, prompting speculation that these two were something more. "She is beautiful. I love hanging out with her. She has a great sense of humor, she makes me laugh, she's just a good girl to hang out with," Lochte said.
However, Culpo wasn't gushing over the swimmer when asked about their relationship. Stating that they were merely friends, she told the New York Post (via USA Today), "People make up things when they see people together. We met, and the next thing, you read something like that. You can't really base it off of just meeting someone." Maybe Lochte was trying to make his move on Culpo, but whatever the case, it didn't work out with the swimmer.
Nick Jonas broke up with her after two years together
Olivia Culpo was further thrust into the spotlight when she began dating Nick Jonas of the Jonas Brothers in 2013. She was so dedicated to their relationship that she packed her bags and moved from her home state of Rhode Island to Los Angeles to be closer to Jonas. "My whole identity was in him," she said on the premiere episode of her TLC show, "The Culpo Sisters."
After two years together, Culpo and Jonas broke up in 2015, with the model stating on her reality show that Jonas was the one to end things. Before the two split, Jonas may have hinted that being away from Culpo for long periods of time due to his music career might have been a factor. "I think that the long-distance thing can be tough, but try to stay in communication, keep it transparent and honest, and it should be okay," he told People before the breakup.
During an interview with ET, the "Sucker" singer addressed the split. "It's very tough and we had a beautiful two years together and [I have] nothing but love and respect for her," he said.
Jonas's song, Jealous, was about Culpo
It's safe to say that before their split, Nick Jonas was enamored with Olivia Culpo. It turns out that his hit song, "Jealous," was written about the beauty pageant queen. While the Jonas Brothers were on hiatus, Nick released his 2014 track from his first album since the band's break, "Nick Jonas." The song deals with a man being jealous when other men show attention to his significant other with lyrics like, "I don't like the way he's lookin' at you / I'm startin' to think you want him too / Am I crazy? Have I lost ya? / Even though I know you love me, can't help it."
It was a personal song for the JoBro, who told Fuse, "We were out somewhere, and someone was staring at [Culpo] a little too long. It was uncomfortably long," he shared. "I kind of got in my head about it for a moment ... I'm in a very happy relationship and it was all in my head." Culpo was also cast as the leading lady in the music video.
There's no word on whether the two exes ever reconnected, but Culpo did tell People she was happy he found love with Priyanka Chopra after the two got engaged in 2018. "I think that any time anybody can find love, especially in this industry – because it's difficult. You can see there's a track record of things not working out. So I'm so happy for him," Culpo said.
Danny Amendola got messy on social media
Olivia Culpo dated another NFL player before her serious relationship with Christian McCaffrey. She had an on-again, off-again romance with NFL wide receiver Danny Amendola that began in early 2016 and would officially end in April 2019.
Shortly after videos showed Cuplo and Zedd, a German DJ, together at Coachella that April, Amendola went on a rampage on his Instagram, which pretty much confirmed the end of their relationship. As People reported of the since-deleted post, Amendola addressed that he and Culpo lived two very different lifestyles. "I believe there should be a boundary btw private life and social media," he wrote. "Olivia believes in fishbowl lifestyle. This fundamental difference was huge in our relationship ... Olivia chooses and wants to be noticed on the internet and in Hollywood to make money."
Amendola's long rant also included private information about their relationship and sex life. And what would a nasty post be without taking aim at Zedd? The NFL player shared, "Not sure what's in the future but the only thing I care about is her HAPPINESS. And if that's dancing with scrony little f***er, so be it." Years later, in a trailer of her show, "The Culpo Sisters," the former Miss Universe mentioned being in a relationship with someone who did "horrible, horrible things" and made her "feel like a less-than-human in every sense of the word." Hmm, we have a good guess on who she may have been referencing.