Emma Raducanu paid a heartfelt tribute following the sudden death of Mathilde Favier, the mother of her former boyfriend Carlo Agostinelli and director of public relations for Christian Dior Couture. She passed away in a car accident in western France earlier this week alongside her partner, French film producer Nicolas Altmayer.
Raducanu shared her condolences publicly, reposting Dior’s announcement to her Instagram Story alongside a white heart and dove emoji. The gesture was a nod to the connection she shared with Favier’s family through her relationship with her son. Carlo was the son of American investment banker Roberto Agostinelli and Favier. He also has a sister named Heloise.
Raducanu and Agostinelli started dating in May 2023, were spotted together in Mexico that summer, and made it public. They broke up in 2024, following which Raducanu removed the images they had posted on social media.
Favier, 57, was widely regarded as one of the fashion industry’s most respected and well-connected figures. Dior confirmed the news in a statement shared on Instagram, with the brand’s CEO Delphine Arnault paying an emotional tribute to her longtime colleague.
“Mathilde loved life with a passion. With the passing of Mathilde, Dior is losing an incredible professional, and I have lost a loyal friend,” Arnault wrote.
“Her optimism and courage commanded admiration. We will sorely miss her smile and her talent. I feel deeply saddened today; my thoughts are very much with her children, her mother, her sisters, her family, her many friends and her team she loved so much.”
According to the Niort prosecutor’s office, the accident occurred on August 17 in the Deux-Sevres region when the vehicle Favier and Altmayer, 61, were traveling in collided with a heavy goods vehicle while overtaking another car. Authorities have opened an investigation into involuntary manslaughter to determine the exact circumstances of the crash.
Tributes also poured in from across the fashion and film worlds, including from Dior creative director Jonathan Anderson, LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault, and numerous film stars from around the world like Jennifer Aniston and Priyanka Chopra, reflecting just how many lives Favier had touched over her career.
Is Emma Raducanu currently dating anyone?
Since the split with Agostinelli, Emma Raducanu’s romantic life has been a public curiosity. After finishing runner-up at Queen’s Club in June, the British No.1 was seen strolling through Battersea Park in London with a new partner, who is said to be a PR professional, John Friend.
Other than that sighting, there are very few details revealed about the relationship, and Raducanu has also not addressed it openly. Friend is only the third man Raducanu has been publicly linked with since her rise to fame, following her earlier relationship with Agostinelli and rumored pairing with Carlos Alcaraz. The Brit has spoken previously about her parents’ preference that she avoid relationships to stay focused on her tennis while she was younger.
Since that Queen’s final, Emma Raducanu has not stepped on the court. She suffered a grade four stress fracture in her right lower leg, which has kept her out of competition, withdrawing from Wimbledon at the last moment and now the US Open. Currently, she is focusing on recovering from the injury, and no official date of comeback has been announced.