‘The Bachelor’ Finale: Nick Viall Picks Vanessa Grimaldi as the 2017 Winner After Breaking Raven Gates’ Heart
It’s official — Vanessa Grimaldi is the 2017 winner of The Bachelor!
The season finale ended with Nick Viall getting down on one knee and proposing to the 29-year-old (after saying goodbye to runner-up Raven Gates) — and it seems like fourth time’s the charm because she said yes!
“I knew this kind of love existed, I just never thought it was going to happen for me until I met you. So thank you for giving me another chance on love,” Vanessa told Nick before he got down on one knee.
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(Photo Credit: Getty Images)
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It’s been a rough road for Vanessa — the special education teacher from Montreal, Canada — who struggled throughout the season as she vied for Nick’s love with 30 other women. During the finale, she was very open about the fact that she didn’t feel comfortable knowing that she may have “won” Nick’s love because their relationship was slightly better than the one he had with Raven.
“I’m not sure if I’m ready for that proposal because things shifted for me,” Vanessa explained to the cameras, prior to eventually accepting her Neil Lane engagement ring.
Vanessa was adamant about some of the things that she wasn’t willing to compromise on — like leaving her family and moving to the United States to be with Nick.
But Nick’s dad Christopher — who has been married to Nick’s mom Mary for 37 years — was able to give her a change of heart. “You have to sacrifice. If you can’t do that, it won’t work,” he said, to which she broke down in tears.
Nick returned to the franchise on Season 21 after his many failed attempts at finding love — on both Andi Dorfman and Kaitlyn Bristowe’s seasons of The Bachelorette and Season 3 of Bachelor in Paradise.
But he almost let his fear of rejection get the best of him, and he said he was “terrified” that he would get rejected again. A source previously revealed to Life & Style that Nick felt like he was “in hell” in the days leading up to the finale.
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“He was having a complete breakdown and needed reassurance on who he was picking,” the insider revealed to Life & Style. “Nick was having mixed emotions.”
But it looks like he finally found his match in Vanessa after all.
Congratulations to the happy couple!
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