Amy Dowden was left in tears as she discussed her exit from Strictly Come Dancing on the show’s sister programme, It Takes Two. The Welsh dancer had to withdraw from the competition, leaving her partner JB Gill to pair up with pro Lauren Oakley.
Amy emphasised that her departure was “nothing to do with any previous health scares”, which included a cancer diagnosis in May 2023 and a Crohn’s disease diagnosis in 2019. Instead, it was a painful foot injury that forced her to step down from this year’s contest.
Speaking to Janette Manrara on the Strictly spin-off show, she revealed: “I’m absolutely gutted, unfortunately, I have an insufficiency stress fracture, if I’ve said that right, on my shin. Amy added: ” She added: “This injury could have happened to anybody. I want to stress it’s nothing to do with any previous health scares.”
(Image: PA Media)
This setback came after she returned to compete in the BBC show for its 20th anniversary series, having missed out last year due to cancer treatment. Amy has been open about her battle with stage three breast cancer, undergoing treatments from mastectomy to chemotherapy.
Earlier this year, she shared positive news that her tests showed “no evidence of disease”. The brave Caerphilly dancer has been honest about her experiences, highlighting her cancer fight and life with Crohn’s disease through various BBC documentaries, reports the Mirror.
The 34 year old star opened up to Janette Manrara, saying: “Hopefully I’ll be back dancing in some capacity, maybe in a group number, by the end of the series.”
With JB Gill set to strut his stuff in this week’s episode, he couldn’t help but rave about his ex-dance partner on the show, calling her soul “beautiful” in a touching video clip. Just hours before, he had hopped onto Instagram to share more love with his fans, gushing about their instant connection.
“It was like we’d been friends forever and as a friend, it’s been heartbreaking seeing the wonderful journey we’d begun come to a halt,” he told his followers, before expressing his awe for her commitment. “Your dedication to your art shines through in your passion for what you love. You would literally give anything to be on that ballroom floor dancing and I feel truly honoured to have shared it with you for 6 weeks,” he continued.
In a heartfelt conclusion to his lengthy post, he wrote: “Our memories and moments will forever be in strictly history and I have no doubt you’ll be back, stronger and better than ever. God bless you always.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
