Inside Justin Trudeau’s Marriage to Ex-Wife Sophie Grégoire

The former sweethearts were married for nearly two decades, during which they welcomed three children into their family. They announced their separation in 2023.

Many might be surprised to learn that Justin Trudeau and Sophie Grégoire's love story actually began in their early childhood. The pair met through the former Canadian prime minister's late younger brother, Michel.

Grégoire was in the same class as Michel and often visited the brothers' home to play. During a 2005 joint interview with Maclean's alongside Trudeau, she confessed she developed a crush on the then-future politician.

"They had a really cool pool with a trapeze and ropes and we could play Tarzan for hours," she shared. "We would hide in the closets to have our first kiss." The pair would reconnect years later when they co-hosted a Canadian Grand Prix charity ball in 2003.

At the time, however, Trudeau wasn't ready for anything serious. When Grégoire emailed him after their reunion, he didn't respond. "I got the email, and I said, 'Nice. Okay. Good.' And I didn't answer it," he recalled.

He continued, "I didn't delete it, I just decided, 'No, I'm better off not starting anything that I'm not willing to go through with.'" Grégoire decided to move on, but a few weeks later, they ran into each other by pure chance.

It was then that Trudeau realized he wanted to be with Grégoire, but she admitted she initially played hard to get. He emailed her that night and they had their first date at an Afghan restaurant.

After dinner, they went to a karaoke bar, where they belted out to Elton John and the Beatles' songs. While walking on the street afterward, Trudeau hilariously walked head-first into a pole.

"I thought, 'Oh my God. You nerd!'" Grégoire fondly recalled the memory. "And he kept explaining for 30 minutes, 'Sophie, Sophie, I never do this.'"

They got engaged on October 18, 2004 — what would have been Trudeau's father, the later Pierre Trudeau's 85th birthday — after visiting the Trudeau family tomb in Saint-Rémi-de-Napierville, Quebec.

That day, Trudeau also treated Grégoire to luxury spa treatments. "He really went out of his way," Grégoire said of the proposal. "There were candles and rose petals everywhere. I felt like I was a princess."

The couple tied the knot on May 28, 2005, in a traditional Catholic ceremony at Sainte-Madeleine d'Outremont Church in Montreal. According to CBC at the time, before entering the church, Grégoire shouted, "I'm the luckiest woman alive!"

They went on to welcome three children into their marriage. Their eldest son, Xavier, was born on October 18, 2007. Their second child, daughter Ella-Grace, followed on February 5, 2009.

"Sophie was an only child so she says one is just fine, two is good, too, but three, you're starting to push it a little bit," he told Maclean's at the time. "But I'm very confident that once we get into it, I'll be able to convince her that three is fine."

After 18 years together, the couple decided to go their separate ways. Trudeau announced their separation on Instagram in August 2023. "As always, we remain a close family with deep love and respect for each other and for everything we have built and will continue to build," he wrote.

"For the well-being of our children, we ask that you respect our and their privacy. Thank you," he concluded. Trudeau's office also revealed that the pair had "signed a legal separation agreement." And, true to their word, the two have remained on good terms.