The Challenge star CT Tamburello was in his feelings when he took to social media on Tuesday to share a sweet tribute to his late ex and co-star, Diem Brown. In the since-edited Instagram post, CT shared an incredible video of the time he spent with Diem, who passed away from ovarian cancer at the age of 32 in 2014. Alongside the heartbreaking clip, according to US Weekly, CT reminisced about their time together and called Diem an “angel”.
The fan-favorite pair were also remembered in CT’s comments section, where one follower recalled the episode when CT complimented Diem while she rocked her hair loss from the chemo. “GI Jane, lookin’ like a little sexy supermodel secret agent,” CJ said in the episode, per the fan’s post.
CT and Diem met while filming MTV’s The Duel in 2006, when Diem was going through her first round of chemotherapy. The pair were together on and off until her untimely death in Nov. 2014. CT was by Diem’s side when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer for a second time and had to complete another round of chemo, which came during her last Challenge season, Battle of the Exes II. CT was also with her in the hospital during her final days.
At the time of her death, CT took to his social media to pay tribute. “You have always been My Angel. And now you have your wings. We’ve been thru so much over the years,” he wrote, per Us Weekly. “We never gave up on each other. Our plan to be together forever hasn’t changed … it’s just going to take a little longer now.”
As mentioned, CT was in his feelings when he posted Diem’s latest tribute, as he is also in the midst of a divorce from Lilianet “Lili” Solares, whom he wed in September 2018, after the couple quietly dated following Diem’s death. The 42-year-old MTV star revealed in a since-deleted Instagram video that he’s lost 65 pounds dealing with the split. “What am I supposed to do with all this? What am I supposed to say? I wanna clear the air. I’m tired of getting dragged,” CT said in the video. He continued, “Look, I can look my mother, my father, my son, baby mama, her parents, too, God, in the eyes. I can honestly say I’ve given you everything you asked for, including this divorce.”
When CT was on The Challenge: Double Agents, which was filmed in 2020, he revealed that he and Lili, who welcomed son Christopher Jr. in 2016, were “separated.” However, they were back together by the time the show aired. Lili has yet to publicly comment on the divorce, and it appears her Instagram is deleted at this time.