Kristina Rihanoff broke her social media silence on Friday after her reported split from Ben Cohen.
The Strictly Come Dancing professional, 47, and the ex-England rugby star’s relationship was the product of the show’s infamous curse when Ben, 46, left his then wife Abby for the Russian star in 2013.
However friends confirmed this week that they ended their 12-year relationship after a series of money troubles.
Sharing a post to Instagram, Kristina brushed off the news and continued to keep her followers updated on her career.
She re-shared an update from the Northants Open Championships, which took place at the weekend at her studio in Northampton.
It marked the very first dance competition that Kristina had organised herself.
Kristina Rihanoff broke her social media silence on Friday after her reported split from Ben Cohen
The ex-England rugby star, 46, and professional dancer’s relationship was the product of the infamous Strictly curse after the pair met on the show in 2013
This week friend told The Sun that the pair have parted ways after financial difficulties tore the relationship apart.
A friend told the publication: ‘Ben left his wife Abby for Kristina, only to now split with her.
‘It’s like the curse in reverse. This will be like karma for Abby, she was so upset when Ben left her. It’s like he has got his comeuppance.’
MailOnline have contacted the couple’s representatives for comment.
Ben left his wife of 11 years Abby for his Strictly Come Dancing partner Kristina, after being partnered up with the blonde bombshell during his 2013 stint on the show.
However cracks had started to show last year after the couple placed their £1.75 million home on the market amid money struggles, which Ben said in court in October had put pressure on their relationship.
The five-bedroom home in Northamptonshire, which was bought in 2016, was put up for sale in October for £1,750,000.
Ben pleaded poverty, admitting he was ‘fighting to save his relationship and home’ after Kristina was caught driving without insurance.
Sharing a post to Instagram, Kristina brushed off the news and continued to keep her followers updated on her career
This week friend told The Sun that the pair have parted ways after financial difficulties tore the relationship apart (picture on Strictly in 2013)
Cracks had started to show last year after the couple placed their £1.75 million home on the market amid money struggles, which Ben said in court had put pressure on their relationship (pictured in 2021)
She was slapped with six points on her licence but faced a ban for totting up 12 penalty points after being caught behind the wheel of her £30,000 Audi Q3 in Northampton on April 4.
The pair appeared to put on a united front last November when Kristina shared a sweet snap with Ben’s two eldest daughters from his marriage to Abby at a black tie event.
Meanwhile she hasn’t shared a snap with Ben on her grid since last August when the couple posed with their daughter at a dance competition.
The sale of the house appears to be a bid to salvage some of their financial difficulties after the pair set up several businesses together.
The pair, who share an eight-year-old daughter Melina, faced more potential legal battles after failing to submit accounts for a yoga studio which plunged almost £500,000 into the red.
Their money troubles started to rear its head following the Covid pandemic in 2020, which impacted their fitness and wellbeing studio called Soo Yoga in Northampton.
The business struggled to make money during the pandemic, which Ben acknowledged while giving his testimony at Northampton Crown Court.
‘I get up every day and I fight not to lose everything – to lose my cars and my house and my relationship. I’m so overdrawn,’ he said.
When questioned on how this was impacting his relationship he added: ‘We’re still living together. We’re in it financially.
‘We’re in business together so the problem is that we opened the business before Covid and we got the worst severities of it and in all honestly this is just another problem for me to deal with.
‘I’ve got credit cards that are overdrawn. I’m overdrawn in both accounts. We have got a business debt because of Covid. It’s just another problem.’
The pair, who share an eight-year-old daughter Melina, faced more potential legal battles after failing to submit accounts for a yoga studio which plunged almost £500,000 into the red
Ben left his wife of 11 years Abby (pictured with her now partner David Warner) for his Strictly partner Kristina, after being partnered up with the blonde bombshell
The company was listed to be compulsorily struck off on December 27, 2022, but the action was suspended nine days later and discontinued on April 28, 2023.
The couple’s business struggles only came to light after Ben laid the issues bare in court, while admitting he had not renewed his partner’s car insurance details.
Kristina left Strictly in 2015 after falling pregnant with Ben’s daughter, now eight.
Ben previously said his relationship with Kristina had been ‘strengthened’ by ‘difficult times in business’ ahead of their wedding.
He told HELLO! magazine: ‘Over the last nine years we’ve been through the wringer. To support each other through difficult times in business is the ultimate test in a relationship.
‘I’ve watched her flourish, from her becoming a mum to growing as a businesswoman, and it has strengthened our bond.’
They told the magazine that they plan to make the big day a family affair with their daughter and Ben’s twin daughters from his marriage to Abby serving as bridesmaids.
In February 2024 he revealed the pair planned to ‘marry in secret’.
Talking about his ploy for a low-key wedding, host Jeremy Vine asked: ‘Ben, I must ask you about love because you’re getting married soon, aren’t you. You’ve been engaged for a while to the Strictly legend, Kristina.’
‘Yeah, Kristina – no, we’re not, we’re not going to get married yet. Listening to you guys [in the studio], it’s so much going on in the world at the moment,’ the sportsperson answered promptly.
‘You know, having a business in today’s world is really tough. Not only do we have to deal with Brexit, we’ve gone into Covid and all the lockdowns and three wars and a recession.
So we’ll get our business sorted and concentrate on that and then once things perk up a little bit, we may think about doing it somewhere probably in secret,’ he added.
