Amy Tinkler is replacing Denise van Outen on this year’s Dancing on Ice after she was forced to pull out due to injury.
Amy, 21, took to Instagram on Tuesday to reveal she has been “working super hard” as a reserve for the popular ITV show with professional skater Joe Johnson.
The retired British artistic gymnast told her 56.9k followers: “For the past 3 months Joe and I have been working super hard as the reserve team for @dancingonice and we’re super excited to say we will be in the show on Sunday!
“We want to wish @vanouten_denise a very speedy recovery, you have been so kind to us and we wish you all the best.
“I can’t wait to show you all what we can do! Thank you Joe for being the most amazing partner, you’re the best! Lots of love.”
Who is Amy Tinkler?
Amy Tinkler has been announced as Denise van Outen’s replacement on Dancing on Ice 2021 (Image: PA)
Amy Tinkler is a retired British artistic gymnast and the 2016 Olympic floor exercise bronze medalist and the 2015 British all-around champion.
In the past, Amy, 21, has confirmed she first started doing gymnastics when she was just two-years-old at the South Durham Gymnastics Club.
It seems the talent runs in the family as her mum was a gymnast too, and was her first coach.
Amy has secretly been practising her ice skating skills with professional skater Joe Johnson
Amy began representing Britain in international competitions at the age of 13, but won her first national medal when she was just nine-years old when she bagged a silver in the British Championships.
In July 2013, Amy took part in the European Youth Olympic Festival in Utrecht, Netherlands, where she was one third of the Great British silver medal winning team.
Amy is the 2016 Olympic floor exercise bronze medalist and the 2015 British all-around champion (Image: PA)
In March 2014 Amy competed at the 2014 British Artistic Gymnastics Championships, her second Junior British Championships after her first in 2013.
She went on to become the Junior All-Around champion with a winning score of 55.250, and has gone on to win medals every year since then.
However, whilst warming up for the Birmingham World Cup in 2018 Amy tore ligaments in her ankle and withdrew from the competition.
Amy announced her retirement from gymnastics in January 2020 when she was just 20-years-old (Image: PA)
This injury caused her withdraw from the Commonwealth Games and was replaced by Taeja James.
In 2019, she did not compete due to injury and in January 2020 Amy announced her retirement from gymnastics.
Why did Denise van Outen quit Dancing on Ice?
Denise van Outen has been forced to quit Dancing on Ice due to an injury (Image: Denise Van Outen/Instagram)
Denise van Outen was forced to quit the 2021 series of Dancing on Ice after badly injuring herself during rehearsals in early January.
The mum-of-one partially dislocated her shoulder after falling during training with her professional partner Matt Evers and was taken to hospital.
However, Denise managed to carry on and made her debut performance two weeks ago with her arm strapped up, and even got through to week three of the competition.
Denise thanked her skating partner Matt Evers for being a ‘true friend’ (Image: Matt Frost/ITV/REX/Shutterstock)
But on January 26 she confirmed that she has been forced to drop out of the competition after having her arm scanned which showed she had been powering through training with multiple bone fractures as well as the dislocation.
Due to her extensive injury, it was determined that she cannot continue to skate whilst she recuperates.
Opening up about the difficult decision, she shared a picture of her and Matt on Instagram and captioned it: “GUTTED! If you’ve been watching @dancingonice you will be aware that just over a week ago I had a nasty fall and injured my shoulder.
Denise’s recent MRI scan showed that she has three bone fractures as well as a partial dislocation in her shoulder (Image: vanouten_denise/Instagram)
“I managed to skate my first dance with @themattevers on the live show through a gritted smile because the pain was unbearable. I’ve tried as hard as I can to carry on because I love the show and the amazing team in front and behind the cameras.”
She added: “Initially we thought with rest I could make a return to the ice, but a recent MRI scan has shown that I have 3 bone fractures as well as a partial dislocation. OUCH! No wonder I’ve been in agony.
“I won’t be able to do any lifts, tricks or solo skating on the show due to my injury.
“I’m going to bail out gracefully with my DOI bling sling. @themattevers has been the most incredible support and skate partner (a true friend) and I’m so grateful for his expertise in teaching me (ice virgin) the basics.
“I just wish I was well enough to learn all the fabulous tricks my injury won’t allow me to do. Chair dancing on Ice with a massive pie won’t get us points on the leaderboard . I’m actually proud of what I’ve achieved (not much, lowest scores so far).
“If you don’t mind I’m going to give myself a couple of points for bravery for doing cartwheels on Ice at 46 with broken bones.
“I wish all the celebs, pros and judges the best of luck for the rest of the series. I’m rooting for you all. Bunch of legends,” Denise added.
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
