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- Colton Underwood came out as gay in a pre-taped interview for "Good Morning America."
- The former NFL player starred in "The Bachelor" season 23, which premiered in 2019.
- He said he's "the happiest and healthiest" he's ever been.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
Former "Bachelor" star Colton Underwood has come out as gay.
He made the announcement in a pre-taped interview with Robin Roberts on "Good Morning America," which aired Wednesday.
"I've ran from myself for a long time," he said in the interview.
"I've hated myself for a long time. I came to terms with that earlier this year and have been processing it, and the next step in all of this was sort of letting people know. I'm still nervous. It's been a journey for sure."
"I'm emotional but I'm emotional in such a good, happy, positive way," he added. "I'm the happiest and healthiest that I've ever been in my life, and that means the world to me."
Watch a clip of the interview here:
-Good Morning America (@GMA) April 14, 2021
Underwood is a former NFL athlete, playing in the tight end position. He played in the practice squads for the San Diego Chargers, the Philadelphia Eagles, and the Oakland Raiders between 2014 and 2016 before being released. No active NFL player has ever been publicly out as gay or bisexual, and only six former players have come out in retirement.
Underwood appeared on season 23 of the "Bachelor" franchise in 2019 and picked contestant Cassie Randolph in the finale. The pair dated until May 2020.
Three months later, Randolph filed a restraining order against Underwood and claimed he put a trackign device on her car and sent her numerous text messages, even pretending to be an anonymous stalker, according to court documents obtained by People at the time.
Randolph also alleged that Underwood would drive to both her apartment in Los Angeles at her parents' home in Huntington Beach, California, in the middle of the night.
A source told the magazine at the time that Randolph thought she was Underwood "were on good terms" following their split, but became terrified of his "text messages and the frightening behavior."
The 25-year-old dropped the restraining order in November, and Underwood said in a statement that the former couple "were able to reach a private agreement," adding that he believed Randolph "acted in good faith."
During the "Good Morning America" interview, Underwood apologized to Randolph.
"I would like to say sorry for how things ended," he said. "I messed up. I made a lot of bad choices."
Underwood said that being in love with Randolph "made it more confusing for me."
"I loved everything about her. I wish that I would've been courageous enough to fix myself before breaking anyone else," he said.
In May 2020, Underwood said that being on "The Bachelor" made him realize he wasn't gay.
Underwood said he questioned his sexuality throughout much of his adolescence and early 20s - but told Lauren Zima on "Entertainment Tonight": "[The show taught me] that I'm straight and I'm very, very attracted to Cassie and women - but it would have been OK if it would have been the other way too."
During his time on "The Bachelor," Underwood said he was a virgin, which became a major storyline on the show.
In his interview on "GMA," Underwood also apologized to the other contestants on "The Bachelor."
"Do I regret being 'The Bachelor? Do I regret handling it the way that I did? I do. I do think I could've handled it better," he said. "I just wish I wouldn't have dragged people into the mess of figuring out who I was."