
38-Year Old Clare Crawley Is The Next ‘Bachelorette’!

The wait is finally over! On Monday, March 2, Clare Crawley announced that she will serve as the lead on the upcoming season of The Bachelorette.

The 38-year-old revealed the exciting news on Good Morning America. “I literally just found out,” Clare said. “So unexpected, can you believe this? Six years later? What is happening?”

During the conversation, Clare addressed her age difference in comparison to previous Bachelor and Bachelorette stars. ABC host, Chris Harrison, also touched on the idea of having younger women on the show in the past and blamed Peter Weber, who serves as the lead on season 24 of The Bachelor, for getting rid of older women. “And by the way, there were older women. Peter got rid of them,” Chris, 48, said.

Going into the show, Clare has an idea of the type of man she is looking for. “I want a man that will take off his armor,” she explained to the Good Morning America hosts. “I want a man that is strong but is willing to take off the body armor, open themselves up and be vulnerable. I think that is some serious strength right there.”

Want OK! each day? Sign up here!
She continued, “The biggest thing for me is, honestly, it’s all what’s on the inside for me. The outside, if you line up all the guys I’ve dated in the past, there’s no one type physically. It’s more, if they go out of their way for me, if they make me feel special. This is about me now. I’m ready for it.”

As Bachelor nation fans might recall, Clare appeared on season 18 of The Bachelor and competed against other contestants for Juan Pablo Galavis’ love. Clare made it to the final two before their split. At the time, Clare explained that she “lost respect” for Juan. While reflecting on their relationship, Clare confessed that she came out a stronger woman as a result. “I am that strong woman still, but even more so what is added to that is, like I said, taking off that armor and actually saying I’m strong enough to let someone in and be vulnerable and open up and share that with them,” she said.

Following her split with Juan, Clare appeared on The Bachelor Winter Games in 2018 and got engaged to Benoit Beauséjour-Savard. The shocking engagement came to an end two months later. At the time, Clare said that the split was a mutual decision. Benoit also congratulated Clare on her Bachelorette news in a touching Instagram post.

Will be tuning into the next season of The Bachelorette on May 18? Share your thoughts in the comments below!