UK

Love Island winners Ekin-Su Culculoglu and Davide Sanclimenti have broken up – after less than a year together.

The couple won the popular ITV reality dating show in August 2022 and became fan favourites after securing nearly two-thirds of the public vote.

Sanclimenti shared the news of the split on Thursday on his Instagram story and said that the pair were “no longer together” but that he wished his former partner “nothing but the best”.

He said: “@ekinsuofficial & I are no longer together.

“I am grateful for the memories and opportunities we shared together and I wish her nothing but the best.

“I would like for everybody to respect this decision during this difficult time, I will continue to support Ekin in any way possible.”

Culculoglu has not yet addressed the break-up publicly.

‘Find someone for love’

The split comes just three days after the pair were pictured together at the London premiere of Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny.

Since winning Love Island, the couple secured a deal for an ITV spin-off show in which they explored their home countries of Italy and Turkey.

The couple had also previously announced that they were moving in together.

Appearing on Good Morning Britain (GMB) in January, Sanclimenti advised future Love Island contestants not to go into the villa hoping for fame but instead to go into it and “find someone”.

He added: “Don’t go there for fame but because you actually want to find someone.

“If you are a genuine person and you actually want to find someone for love and the right person is there you will have an amazing experience.”

Speaking in an Interview with Boohoo Man earlier this year, Sanclimenti also opened up about his “struggles” in the relationship.

“Me and Ekin-Su had our struggles due to our public positions and we still have them sometimes.

“If there’s something that I would change or would have done differently [with Ekin-Su in the villa] maybe I would have taken things a bit more slowly.”

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But he said the best thing about dating Culculoglu was that they “understand each other – not just because we are literally the same person”.

He added: “She is my copy-paste. Also, because we come from the same experience and the same background.

“She met my family and fortunately, all my parents love her and Ekin-Su’s family love me.”

In November last year, Love Island runners-up Luca Bish and Gemma Owen previously announced their separation – less than four months after leaving the villa.