It’s sort of flown under the radar because, in my opinion, people don’t care that much about celebrities dating “normal” un-famous people, but Gisele Bundchen lied her ass off for months! Gisele swore up and down that she didn’t have a jumpoff after divorcing Tom Brady. Gisele swore that she wasn’t romantically involved with Joaquim Valente, her jiu-jitsu instructor and friend. They were seen out together the whole time, immediately following her divorce from Tom in 2022. Only now are sources admitting that, yeah, Gisele and Joaquim have been dating for months already. And even then, I think it’s been happening a lot longer than that.
Gisele Bündchen and Joaquim Valente have been dating since June, PEOPLE can confirm.
“They have been dating since June. They’re taking it slow. They started out as great friends first. She’s very private about this and wanted to keep it quiet while they got to know each other,” a source tells PEOPLE.
Reps for Bündchen, 43, and Valente could not be reached for comment.
A second source confirmed that Bündchen and her family’s jiu-jitsu instructor’s feelings toward each other developed over time after initially having a platonic relationship.
“They started out as friends,” the second source tells PEOPLE. “He was a huge comfort for Gisele while she went through her divorce. Their friendship turned romantic after the divorce.”
The insider adds, “Joaquim is a great guy. He is down to earth, kind and inspiring. Gisele was hesitant about dating after the divorce. It’s been very natural for her to date Joaquim.”
According to the exclusive source, she “loves that he is Brazilian” like her.
“They come from similar backgrounds. They both left Brazil very young. They have both created amazing lives for themselves in the U.S. They both love Miami, but also enjoy traveling. They both enjoy healthy living. Gisele’s in a great space. She is happy and very much enjoying life. Joaquim is perfect for her,” the insider tells PEOPLE.
In January 2023, a separate insider told PEOPLE that Bündchen and Valente had been “spending a lot of time” with each other and even vacationed together in Costa Rica on numerous occasions, but had not gone further than a friendship at that point.
I love a friends-to-lovers story as much as the next person and even if Gisele was lying about when she and Joaquim started, it’s pretty unimportant in the grand scheme of things. Her marriage to Tom was over by 2022, they settled everything quickly and both of them moved on. I do find it interesting that Gisele went from one half of one of the most famous celebrity-couples in the world to dating a normal and lowkey Brazilian guy. She must have been so f–king tired of Tom and everything that came with “being in a celebrity couple.”
Photos courtesy of Backgrid.
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- Los Angeles, CA – Is supermodel Gisele Bündchen the next celebrity to bring their brand to the high end Erewhon smoothie craze? The Brazilian model was seen at the luxury organic grocery store frequented by celebrities skillfully preparing her signature immunity smoothie for the cameras. This past year Hailey Bieber’s “Strawberry Skin Glaze” smoothie which sold for about $17 went TikTok-viral. According to Business Insider the chain sells 40,000 of the smoothies per month. The drink according to the grocer’s website is made with The drink contains Malk almond milk, banana, Rancho Meladuco dates, Vital Proteins vanilla collagen, Erewhon sea moss, Zuma Valley coconut crème, Maple Valley maple syrup, hyaluronic acid, strawberries, avocado, vanilla stevia, and housemade strawberry glaze. GQ wrote about the drink describing it as ” mythical—a swirly pink symbol of impossible beauty, hype, luxury, and unattainable wellness.” It seems that Gisele may now be the next model/celeb to lend her name to the overpriced smoothie trend. Pictured: Gisele Bündchen BACKGRID USA 11 JANUARY 2024 BYLINE MUST READ: @CelebrityLivin_ / BACKGRID USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- New York City, NY – Gisele Bundchen arrives for Frame Denim’s Fashion Week dinner at Indochine in New York City, during Fashion Week. Pictured: Gisele Bundchen BACKGRID USA 12 FEBRUARY 2024 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
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- New York City, NY – Gisele Bundchen arrives for Frame Denim’s Fashion Week dinner at Indochine in New York City, during Fashion Week. Pictured: Gisele Bundchen BACKGRID USA 12 FEBRUARY 2024 USA: +1 310 798 9111 / usasales@backgrid.com UK: +44 208 344 2007 / uksales@backgrid.com *UK Clients – Pictures Containing Children Please Pixelate Face Prior To Publication*
Quiet? TMZ has been calling this almost from day one — with pictures, no less.
Was thinking the same thing. It’s not new news. I hope she is happy.
Did somebody not know?
She’s literally and figuratively hitting it.
😂
I never thought of Gisele and Tom as a big “celebrity couple” so I can’t imagine she was so tired of being 1/2 of a super public couple. For a hot minute they did those stupid ads for some sort of bitcoin thing (and lost money and are being sued I think??) but they were not courting exposure as far as I can remember. If anything, her career is helped by exposure, his not really. My guess is that she’s looking for fun and attentiveness to her needs for once, and hopefully she gets it.
Tired of being in a celebrity couple but also coming in second to husband’s focus on his brand and chasing ring after ring. That’s a lot of time away from your family and she took the brunt of taking care of their family, help or no help that’s a lot on a person.
Definitely seems more like a good companion and partner than Tom…probably a lot better in the sheets too.
I am married to a Jiu Jitsu black belt and I can confirm it’s pretty fabulous 😁
Good for her!
They’ve been dating or at least doing the horizontal tango for some time, lol. People keep saying Tom and Gisele’s split was caused by Tom going back to football but it’s obvious he went back to football because he didn’t want to deal with his marital issues. Their divorce was a long time coming.
Gisele’s face is looking insanely tight – she’s clearly had some additional work or injectables done recently.
Gisele gave Tom every chance to honor his word to retire and be with the family. When he reneged on the deal. She had every right to find happiness.
He can go be weird in the corner as a Dunking and leave her alone.