May Hatuel, 32, says the sudden exposure from the latest season of The Amazing Race has brought both opportunities and backlash, but not a change in her immediate life plans. In an interview on the podcast Spell It with Lilach Markovich, she discussed the public reaction to her friendship with her longtime teammate Itay On, the criticism she has faced online, and the strain the show put on her marriage. She also said she apologized to her husband over how the relationship was portrayed, while stressing that she is still not ready for children.
Hatuel said the months between finishing the race and the broadcast of the season were quiet, but only on the surface. After returning, she found herself moving between reserve duty in a male-dominated unit and editing videos, while also dealing with what she called a long-held dream of entering entertainment. She said she was surprised by the online attention, including nearly 70,000 followers, and noted that the show opened doors to working with brands and creating content, even though the job is much harder than it appears.
A major focus of the interview was the backlash over her close bond with On. Hatuel said the editing emphasized brief moments of hand-holding and hugging under pressure, which made the relationship look more intimate than it was. She said her husband was hurt by viewers’ comments, and that she felt she had failed to anticipate how the footage would read. “The only thing I would maybe think about more is the touch,” she said, adding that she and On have been friends for years and that her husband knew the friendship well.
Despite the fallout, Hatuel said she does not regret taking part in the show and would do it again, even with On. She said the experience taught her to be less apologetic and more aware of the consequences of what airs. On the question of family, however, she was clear: she is not there yet. “I think about it a lot,” she said, but added that she feels like she is still on her post-army trip, wants to enjoy life, and “I don’t see how it fits into my life right now.”
