'Love Island USA' Stars Nic Vansteenberghe and Olandria Carthen's Relationship Revisited After Split

Nic Vansteenberghe and Olandria Carthen's relationship fizzled out just over a year after their romance first took shape on Love Island USA.

Before forming what Carthen later described as a "sacred connection," the pair explored other relationships in the villa. Vansteenberghe was initially coupled with Belle-A Walker before pursuing Cierra Ortega, while Carthen was primarily paired with Taylor Williams. Eventually, however, the "Nicolandria" ship set sail.

More than a year after their romance began, Vansteenberghe and Carthen called it quits. Here's a look back at their relationship following his confirmation of the split.

Vansteenberghe and Carthen's romance was not immediate when they first met during the seventh season of Love Island USA.

"In that moment, Nic and I were in two different spaces," she said in an interview with Variety published in July 2025. "Our connections at the time were still open. I was still trying to make amends with Taylor. Nic felt like he owed Cierra so much. In that moment, we didn't allow ourselves to feel that spark. It could have been there, but we were trying to convince ourselves that it wasn't because we felt like we owed our people so much."

Vansteenberghe and Carthen quickly emerged as one of the season's strongest couples after they finally gave their connection a real chance. They soon earned a spot in the final four and ultimately finished as runners-up in the season finale.

"I came to realize something: the person who has been standing beside you through it all may actually be the person you were meant to find," Carthen told Vansteenberghe during the finale. "I am not sure how I never noticed that it was you the entire time."

During the July 2025 interview with Variety, Carthen said she and Vansteenberghe "had a thing for each other since day one."

"I kissed him on day one," she recalled. "Just because I didn't choose to go with him does not mean that spark wasn't there. It took us some time to get to this point. But that's what makes this connection so special. We've been building up to this point."

After their successful run on Love Island USA, Vansteenberghe and Carthen took their relationship outside the villa.

Carthen also shared selfies from their final date, writing in the caption, "My Love Island journey was imperfectly perfect, but it was uniquely my own. My intentions were never to hurt anyone along the way, but to become a seed watered by love. I walked out of the villa with an unexpected but extraordinary connection that I hope lasts for all eternity, friendships that'll last a lifetime, a new outlook on life, and my head held higher than ever before. Thank you all again and again and again!"

The two made more public appearances in the months thereafter, including a dreamy getaway in Greece and a casual outing in California.

"It's something that we haven't labeled yet," Vansteenberghe told Us Weekly in an interview. "We're going at the comfortable pace that we want to go at. When we look at the grand scheme of things, we're just taking our time and investing in the real world and enjoying each other's company."

During an exclusive February interview with OK! while promoting his collaboration with Dove Men+Care, Vansteenberghe called himself a "lucky man" amid his growing romance with Carthen.

"Olandria and I, we're killing it," he shared. "We were in L.A. the other day, got dinner, saw a movie."

Vansteenberghe opened up to TJ Palma about his long-distance relationship with Carthen during a May episode of Beyond the Villa.

"She's in Houston, so it's only two-and-a-half hours away, but at the same time, it's like…she is never in Houston and I'm never in Florida," he said.

"You guys are so busy and everything. How do you make time for each other?" Palma asked, to which Vansteenberghe replied, "It's rough. I mean, I'm in a club probably Wednesday through Saturday, and she's 99 percent doing a shoot throughout the week or whatever, but honestly, our schedules have been aligning up pretty nicely… She, coincidentally, was in L.A. yesterday, so we got dinner, chilled, kicked it. I mean, [we] just pray that it aligns."

Unfortunately, the distance eventually took a toll on Vansteenberghe and Carthen's romance.

Multiple news outlets, including People and E! News, reported the two had called it quits more than a year after they first met on Love Island USA.

"The distance between them and their busy schedules made it challenging to maintain their connection," a source said on July 22. "They still remain close friends. They share a deep love and respect for each other and will always support one another whenever possible."

Vansteenberghe confirmed the breakup in a subscribers-only TikTok on July 26, saying the "rumors are true."

"I didn't want to give people false hope, so I want to clear the air. We will continue to love each other ALWAYS. It's a sensitive, as well as a private subject, thank you for respecting our privacy," he continued.

The following month, he played coy when asked whether he and Carthen had reunited at Jordyn Woods and Karl-Anthony Towns' wedding.

"I would love to tell you guys, but I'm going to keep that private for now," he said in footage shot by John Pascarella at LIV Beach at Fontainebleau Las Vegas on August 16. "We did enjoy ourselves tremendously at Karl and Jordyn's wedding last night. It was amazing."