She turned heads when she waltzed into Bachelor In Paradise and following her failed Fijian romance with Grant Kemp, Ali Oetjen is set to do it all over again as the new Bachelorette!
“I have had my heart broken, but I’ve picked myself up and I’m ready to put my heart on the line again,” Ali says.
“I’m absolutely thrilled to start this new adventure.”
It’s her third shot at a reality TV relationship, and Ali hopes her time as the Bachelorette for 2018 will yield a love that will last forever.
“[I want] a commitment to say ‘I’m yours’ forever and always,” the 32-year-old tells TV WEEK.
After having her heart broken as the second runner-up on Tim Robards‘ The Bachelor season in 2013, and again since exiting Paradise, Ali is looking forward to having the ball in her court.
“I’m 32, im ready to be married and have kids but I’m willing to wait until I find the right one,” Ali declares.
“I’m so excited to have the chance to make meaning of my heart breaks and pick wisely to find an ever lasting love.”
And she says she will not settle for anything less than a fairy-tale romance.
“He has to be perfect for me and anything that falls short of that I won’t settle for,” Ali adds.
So what does “perfect” look like to the bubbly blonde? Ali reveals she has a checklist of qualities her new man has to tick.
“My ideal partner is ambitious, motivated, family orientated, wants to marry and have two kids,” she begins.
“[He] is sweet, caring, outgoing, athletic, courageous, funny, down to earth, genuine and clicks with me 100 per cent.
“And I’m looking forward to offering that love back to him in return.”
Ali’s previous dating history has left her forever the fiancée, never the bride.
Before falling for Grant on Bachelor In Paradise, the former real estate agent was engaged to Dave Waldeck. The pair parted ways before she went to Fiji.
However, Ali insists she does not regret her public break-ups.
“I’m truly an independent woman who knows what she wants and who she is,” she says when asked how she’s changed since first appearing on our screens.
As for what we can expect from her season of The Bachelorette, the self-dubbed “Healthy Lifestyle Motivator” says she hopes viewers see her for “just as I am.”
“I’m hoping I’m portrayed as…outgoing, fun, friendly, loving and adventurous,” she adds.
When will The Bachelorette 2018 return?
There’s no official premiere date for Ali’s season of The Bachelorette, but past seasons have traditionally aired just days after The Bachelor wraps up at the end of September.
That means we can look forward to a double-whammy of interesting personalities, as Ali’s stint will follow the highly-anticipated season of The Bachelor Australia, which has rugby star Nick ‘Honey Badger’ Cummins’ in the title role.
It’s exciting times in the Bachie franchise!
