Naomi Campbell reacts to Liam Payne's death following previous romance rumours

Naomi Campbell shares her reaction to Liam Payne's death for the first time.

The 54-year-old supermodel commented on Nicole Scherzinger's Instagram post on Friday, October 25, honoring Payne following his death on October 16.

Scherzinger, 46, spoke about her years-long friendship with Payne and offered her condolences to his family and friends, while Campbell shared her reaction to the emotional tribute in the comments section, posting: “🕊️💔🕊️🙏🏾.”

PEOPLE has reached out to Campbell's representatives for further comment.

Payne died on October 16 at the age of 31 after falling several floors at the CasaSur Palermo Hotel in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Policía Federal Argentina confirmed to PEOPLE.

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Campbell and Payne first sparked romance rumors in early 2019 after being photographed and interacting at several of the same events Flirting messages on social media.

The couple attended a Formula E event in Hong Kong in March that year but were not photographed together, it is said The sun. In the same month, British newspaper metro said Campbell and Payne attended an event at London's National Portrait Gallery.

The supermodel and the late singer were also exchanging flirty messages on Instagram at the time of the dating rumors. In January 2019, Campbell commented, “Beautiful soul” under a shirtless photo of Payne, while days later, in response to a selfie posted by Campbell, he wrote, “Perfection in one person…”

When appearing on See what's happening live In December 2019, Payne refused to comment on the romance rumors when questioned by host Andy Cohen during a game of “Plead the Fifth.”

“I advocate the fifth point – it’s my right as a human being,” he joked on the show at the time.

Campbell also refused to comment on the dating rumors between the two when she appeared The Jonathan Ross Show in March 2019. “I never talk about my personal life,” she replied when asked about the nature of her relationship with Payne.

Campbell's reaction to Scherzinger's tribute to Payne comes as the singer and talent show host spoke about her bond with Payne after working with him early in his career as part of the band One Direction The X Factor.

“Dear Liam, I will forever cherish and cherish the time we spent together, from fifteen years ago when One Direction was born to just a few weeks ago,” Scherzinger wrote alongside two photos of her, Payne and Kelly Rowland.

“It was a blessing to work with you recently. “We shared the same love and passion for music and I will forever remember the meaningful and joyful conversations we had,” the former Pussycat Dolls star continued. “It was so hard to process that you are no longer here… I will miss you.” “My friend and carry you in my heart.”