Couple whose ordeal inspired Boston Marathon bombing film 'Stronger' are to divorce after two years 

  • Jeff Bauman and Erin Hurley announced their divorce on Wednesday morning
  • The couple married in November 2014, a year after he lost his legs in bombing
  • They have a two-year-old daughter together who they say they will co-parent
  • Their story and Bauman's book about the bombings inspired the movie Stronger
  • Jake Gylenhall plays him in the film which is due to be released this year

By Jennifer Smith For Dailymail.com

Published: 10:21 EST, 8 February 2017 | Updated: 15:29 EST, 8 February 2017

Boston bombing survivor Jeff Bauman and his wife Erin are getting divorced. 

The couple announced they were parting ways on Wednesday after two years of marriage and almost four years together after he lost his legs in the marathon attacks in 2013.

'Jeff and Erin have decided that it is best to move forward as friends,' a family spokesman told DailyMail.com. 

They will continue to co-parenting their two-year-old daughter Nora, they added. 

Jeff Bauman and Erin Hurley (above while she was pregnant with their daughter in 2014) are getting a divorce 

Jeff Bauman and Erin Hurley (above while she was pregnant with their daughter in 2014) are getting a divorce 

'They are dedicated to loving and parenting their daughter, Nora, and ask for privacy.' 

The couple's romance and former Costco-worker Jeff's role in helping police track down the terrorists behind the attack inspired the film Stronger starring Jake Gylenhall and Tatiana Maslany.

The movie is due to be released later this year. Sources told The Hollywood Reporter it will go ahead unchanged despite the recent announcement. 

Jeff, 30, was waiting at the finish line for Erin, 29, on April 15, 2013, when he was struck by the blast of one of two homemade bombs left by Dzhokhar A. Tsarnaev and Tamerlan Tsarnaev. 

A photograph of him being wheeled away from the scene by strangers with ash on his face is one of the most haunting and well remembered from the tragedy. 

Bauman was waiting for Hurley at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in 2013 when he had his legs blown off by the bombs 

Bauman was waiting for Hurley at the finish line of the Boston Marathon in 2013 when he had his legs blown off by the bombs 

Bauman and Hurley welcomed their only child, Nora, in July 2014, a year after the attacks 

Bauman and Hurley welcomed their only child, Nora, in July 2014, a year after the attacks 

The pair married in November, 2014 (left) and took their baby daughter to the second anniversary of the bombings in April 2015 (right)
At the two year anniversary of the bombings, the couple brought along their baby daughter 

The pair married in November, 2014 (left) and took their baby daughter to the second anniversary of the bombings in April 2015 (right)  

Hurley ran the marathon in 2016 and her husband was there to greet her at the finish line. The pair enjoyed an emotional embrace after she finished (above)

Hurley ran the marathon in 2016 and her husband was there to greet her at the finish line. The pair enjoyed an emotional embrace after she finished (above)

Bauman became a key witness for the FBI and was able to describe how he had crossed paths with one of the attackers minutes before the blast. 

Within minutes of waking up after being unconscious for 30 hours, he told detectives that he saw Dzhokar near the finish line with a back pack and helped lead them to him.  

Bauman and Hurley said they were committed to co-parenting Nora who is  now two 

Bauman and Hurley said they were committed to co-parenting Nora who is  now two 

He penned a book about the attack, describing in harrowing detail how he looked Dzhokar in the eye moments before the blast and noticed the backpack he was carrying.  

'He looked right at me. You know, we kind of met eyes and he just had a straight face.

'He had a backpack on, I saw it on his shoulder; he was holding it. And then I turned away from him.

'I kind of wanted to move anyways. I thought Erin [Hurley] had probably already finished so we missed her because it was just so many people and ... not even two minutes later, I saw — I didn’t even hear it — I saw a white flash and a loud pop, pop, pop, sounded like three pops and, you know, I was on the ground,' he wrote. 

Hurley ran the marathon again in 2016, three years after the attack, with Bauman standing at the finish line to greet her. 

The couple married in November 2014 four months after welcoming their daughter Nora. 

He is adored by the city of Boston and celebrated as one of its treasures, last year joining Jake Gylenhall as they threw the first pitch for the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

Bauman's book about the attacks inspired the film Stronger starring Jake Gylenhall and Tatiana Maslany who play the couple 

Bauman's book about the attacks inspired the film Stronger starring Jake Gylenhall and Tatiana Maslany who play the couple 


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