Graziano Di Prima broke his silence since being accused of abuse during his time on Strictly Come Dancing.
The dancer said the allegations have “ruined [his] life,” after remaining quiet following Zara McDermott’s Instagram post detailing her experience on the reality television show.
Love Island star Zara was allegedly the victim of abuse after an internal investigation into co-star Giovanni Pernice was carried out. Graziana was swiftly fired by the BBC after they saw the evidence, reports say.
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(Image: Getty Images)
The star spoke out about the incident and denied any incidents of intentional abuse. “I thought we were friends. We were friends,” Graziano told the Daily Mail.
“I’m not a monster. I’m not an abusive man. I will not let these lies define me. They are not who I am. These vile, false allegations ruined my life in a matter of minutes – professionally, financially, psychologically and reputationally.
“I can be strict, I can be passionate. I want my partner to go as far as they can. Zara wanted that, too. You can’t imagine how many times my mind has been going back and forward trying to think of something that happened all those months ago that I can’t figure out.
“The only thing I can think of is the time I kicked the floor in frustration. We’d practised hour after hour to perfect a routine with lifts. It wasn’t easy but that’s the pressure of the show. I was in pain from lifting her so many times but wanted to get it right. I thought I could save her [from elimination].
‘I wasn’t meaning to kick her. I’d never, never do that. My foot brushed her after I kicked the floor. Afterwards I hugged her and said I was sorry. There was no problem. We carried on.”
(Image: Getty Images)
The dancer then added that Zara never expressed discomfort or unhappiness to him, which left him shocked at her allegations.
He said: “Right now, my reputation is zero and it will take a superhuman effort for me to get up from this hole. But I do believe the truth always wins in the end. I am determined not to let my and my family’s lives be destroyed.”
Zara took to her social media after Graziana’s firing and released an Instagram statement to her two million followers. Zara’s statement read: “So much of my Strictly experience was everything I could have dreamt of… However, my experience inside the training room was very different.”
Graziano expressed his regret following the incident and acknowledged that he would take a step back from the show. He finished his statement by saying, “There’s more to this story that I am unable to discuss at this time.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
