A sad loss for Bachelor Nation so early in 2022. Clint Arlis, who competed for Kaitlyn Bristowe‘s love on season 11 of The Bachelorette, has died at the age of 34. He was a 27-year-old architectural engineer from the Chicago area when he appeared on the ABC hit in 2015. A cause of death has not been made public at this time.
“This is an Instagram Story I did not think I’d be doing tonight,” Kaitlyn, 36, said in an Instagram Story video early on Friday, January 14. “Clint, who was on my season of The Bachelorette, I’m gonna say tragically, he’s tragically passed. 34 years old. I’m not sure what happened, how it happened.”
“Even though things didn’t end on the best terms for us, from his time on the show to today, I have heard nothing but incredible things about that person. From his peers, his students, his coaches, his teachers, his friends, his family, Clint was very well respected in his world,” she continued.
Kaitlyn added, “This Instagram Story is literally to just say to anyone who knows him who might follow me that I am so sorry. It’s such huge loss and I’m honestly just beside myself with this news.”
Clint made it to the third week of Kaitlyn’s season, and was the first contestant she gave a one-on-one date rose. During his time on the show, he was best remembered for his close friendship with fellow contestant JJ Lane. The pair were involved in a playful “bromance” during the series that was featured in promos for the show.
He received a dual master’s degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2010 in civil engineering and architecture. In his ABC profile while competing on The Bachelorette, Clint listed his favorite movies as Tommy Boy, Good Will Hunting, and Gladiator, while adding that he would be Chuck Norris if he could trade places with anyone for a day. Clint also said that he admired his father’s creative drive, work ethic and ingenuity.
Clint’s Batavia, Illinois, high school wrestling coach, Scott Bayer, posted the sad news about his former athlete’s death via Twitter on January 12, 2022, writing, “It is with a heavy heart and a sense of profound loss that we announce the death of one of the Batavia wrestling program’s all-time greats, 2005 graduate, Clint Arlis.” He continued, “Clint was the beloved son of Coach Tom Arlis and his wife, Jamie, protective, loving older brother of his sister, Taylor, and the boyhood idol and best friend of his kid brother, Coach Logan Arlis.”
Coach Bayer added, “His legacies as a fierce competitor, tireless worker, a caring influence to younger Batavia wrestlers, a devoted friend and a loving son and brother will resonate far beyond his days in our presence.”
The University of Illinois’ Fighting Illini wrestling team shared a Facebook post with their condolences, writing, “We are incredibly saddened to hear of the passing of former Illini wrestler Clint Arlis. Our thoughts are with Clint’s family and friends during this heartbreaking time. We will miss you, Clint.”
The former reality star seemed to be on the move and wanting to return to his native Texas. On his current LinkedIn bio, Clint stated, “Houston transplant with nine years of experience in the Chicago building market looking for a position in Houston or Austin.” He noted that he had, “Managed preconstruction and construction stages on several multi-million dollar projects across a variety of building typologies as a project manager.