SPOILER ALERT: This story contains spoilers from the Season 1 finale of “The Golden Bachelorette,” which aired Wednesday night on ABC.

Joan Vassos’ first “Golden Bachelorette” journey has come to a dramatic conclusion.

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School administrator Vassos gave her final rose to insurance executive Chock Chapple, who proposed to her, and sent emergency room doctor Guy Gansert to her home.

The episode began in Tahiti with Vassos feeling defeated as second-place finisher Pascal Ibgui voluntarily eliminated himself after feeling unable to fall in love with him, leaving Chapple and Gansert as the final two men.

Vassos soon returned for her final two dates with her suitors, who added the added stress of meeting some of Vassos’ family. Chapple’s date went extremely well and he even told Vassos that he loved her. Even though Vassos did not respond to these three words, he felt that he had made up his mind and had to say goodbye to Gansert.

So while preparing, Gansert visited the Bora Bora bungalow and ended their trip before their deadline. “My heart belongs to someone else now… This was the last thing I wanted. I’m so sorry,” she told a crying Gansert. Gansert later told Vassos that she was in love with him, to which Vassos responded: “I love you, but I love you in a different way.”

Gansert and Vassos later met live at the After the Final Rose taping (the series was filmed months earlier), where they hugged and shared their respects. “Was there something missing?” Gansert asked Vassos after reflecting on how their relationship was a “slow progression.”

“In another situation, I would have been with you because we would have had more time… It was definitely not something you did,” Vassos said. replied Vassos, adding that he hoped they could go on a double date in the future.

The finale then returned to Tahiti to show Vassos and Chapple’s final rose ceremony and proposal. “I’m in love with Cock and I want to spend the rest of my life with him. “It makes me see a future again,” Vassos told the producers hopefully.

The two shared a romantic beach proposal, where Vassos told Chapple he loved her, and they FaceTimed Vassos’ mother to tell her the news.

The happy couple then appeared on stage live, where they were happy to no longer have to keep their relationship a secret. “Everyone deserves love and affection,” Vassos told the audience, encouraging people to take a leap of faith to find love at every stage of life.

Chapple had been a clear frontrunner all season after getting the first one-on-one date (at Disneyland), but his journey appeared to be cut short in Episode 4 when he had to abruptly leave the show at his mother’s request. death. However, after spending some time with his family, he returned to the mansion and continued filming. “There was no way I wouldn’t come back,” he said in the confessional. “I have a unique opportunity that very few people in the world get with a wonderful woman.”

Vassos was named ABC’s first “Golden Bachelor” after competing on the inaugural season of Gerry Turner’s “Golden Bachelor.” Although Vassos was an early favorite, he voluntarily left in the third week of the season to help his daughter with a medical emergency.

The series follows the same premise as the traditional “Bachelor” franchise shows, but the cast consists of singles looking for love in their golden years instead of their 20s and 30s. Therefore, almost all of the contestants are either widowed or divorced and had families of their own before participating. Vassos, who has four children and two grandchildren, lost his wife to pancreatic cancer in 2021. Throughout the season, viewers watched her overcome her grief and find love once again, while honoring her late husband John.

Although Vassos’ season was less drama-filled than other “Bachelor” series and the suitors seemed to get along pretty well for the most part, behind the scenes the season was not without scandal.

According to documents obtained, while the series was airing, a restraining order against the second Gansert, filed by his ex-wife in 2021 and rejected before this decision was made, resurfaced. People. Gansert spoke about the temporary protection order: writing on Instagram “This was an unfortunate situation that occurred during an incredibly stressful time for me and my ex-partner, and was ultimately resolved by his voluntary denial of the request for a protective order,” he said last month. “Together we prepared a decision that both parties would accept.”

Vassos later addressed the situation himself, saying on “The Viall Files” podcast, “The ‘Gold’ series is a little bit unique because we come here with so much history.” “We’ve lived so many lives, and it doesn’t surprise me at all that later on there are things that maybe they’re not proud of.”

“I still believe that he (Gansert) is a kind and good person. Maybe he made a mistake. I don’t know. “I don’t know anything about it other than what you know,” Vassos added.

Another “Golden Bachelor” contestant, Gil Ramirez, also had a temporary restraining order filed against him by a judge in June 2024, according to documents obtained. People. Ramirez was sent home in Episode 4.

The next step in the ABC series Grant Ellis The season of “The Bachelor” will be the 29th season of the series. The season will premiere on ABC on January 27, and Season 10 of “Bachelor in Paradise” will air in 2025.

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