Shakira and Longtime Boyfriend Split
NEW YORK (CBS) Shakira and her agent-boyfriend, Antonio de la Rua, have split after 11 years together.
The Colombian singer and her agent-boyfriend separated back in August, but remain friends and business partners, the pair announced Monday on her website.
"We made a mutual decision to take time apart from our romantic relationship," they wrote. "Throughout this time we have continued to work together hand in hand, have remained close and have kept the details absolutely private until now."
People magazine reported Tuesday that Shakira was rumored to be linked to Spanish soccer star Gerard Pique in recent months, but the singer denied it.
The two said in the statement that they view the separation as "temporary and as a time of individual growth as we continue to be partners in our business and professional lives."
"Antonio continues to oversee and conduct my business and career interests as he has always done. We move forward as partners, developing projects together, working hand in hand and in close communication," they continued. "Our friendship and understanding of one another is unwavering and indestructible."
In the note, she and de la Rua, the son of a former president of Argentina, called their 11 years together "the most wonderful years of our lives."
