T-ARA’s Hyomin and football player Hwang Ui-jo split up

T-ARA’s Hyomin has officially announced her split from professional footballer Hwang Ui-jo.

• READ MORE: T-ARA shine on much-wanted comeback release ‘Re:T-ARA’, but fail to stand out

Earlier today (March 8), the K-pop idol’s managing agent confirmed to News1 that the couple has broken up. They were first reported to be in a relationship earlier in January, and were allegedly spotted in Switzerland together. However, at the time, neither of them had released an official statement confirming or denying the relationship.

“We’d like to share our position regarding the dating news that was reported in January,” shared a representative for Hyomin, as translated by Soompi. “At that time, they were seeing each other with good feelings, but due to the pressure of the situation, they naturally grew apart, and they have now decided to remain acquaintances who support each other.”

The representative then went on to address the lack of response at the time news of the relationship had broke. “At the time, neither Hyomin nor Hwang Ui-jo had management agencies, so there was no one who could perform official duties,” they explained. “We ask for your understanding that they could not respond quickly to inquiries.”

T-ARA made their long-awaited comeback last November with the single album ‘Re:T-ARA’, which marked their first release in four years. For the project, the girl group reunited with hitmakers Jo Young-soo and Ahn Young-min, both of whom had previously collaborated with them on singles such as ‘Day By Day’ and ‘Lie’.

Earlier this year, T-ARA member Jiyeon announced her engagement to professional baseball player Hwang Jae-gun through a hand-written letter on Instagram. The pair had reportedly been dating for roughly six months prior to their engagement, according to Korea JoongAng Daily.

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