Dancing On Ice has revealed the first contestant to take part in the upcoming series and it’s a big name!
World boxing champion Ricky Hatton MBE will take to the ice to compete with 11 other celebrities in the hope of becoming the winner in 2024.
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Holly Willoughby, who hosts the skating competition, and Ben Shephard made the announcement on Tuesday’s morning edition of This Morning.
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After Ricky’s name was revealed, Holly said: “It’s great to see you! I’m so excited to bring you to the rink,” before asking the athlete why he decided to enter.
Ricky explained: “To set a new challenge [for myself],” he began. “It’s well documented that I’ve struggled with retirement from boxing and I give a little for mental health and now I’m trying to give a little back. And what I’m banging on about is, ‘try to be busy’. When I retired, I sat around and had nothing to do and my world fell apart.
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© ITVRicky Hatton joins Dancing on Ice 2024
“That’s why I want to be busy, be active, do things that are positive for you and new ventures.”
Ben interjected, “You’ve fought some serious opponents in the past. Fighting on the ice is quite the challenge, are you a great skater?” to which Ricky laughed, “No, not at all. I can dance on a hard floor, but it’s a challenge.”
He added: “If I can hold my temper in the boxing ring, I should be able to hold my temper on the ice rink.”
© Matt Frost/ITV/ShutterstockAshley Banjo, Oti Mabuse, Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean on Dancing on Ice
Ricky competed as a professional boxer between 1997 and his retirement in 2012. During his career, he held multiple world championships at welterweight and one at welterweight. He has fought big names over the years, including Floyd Mayweather Jr., Chris Eubank and Manny Pacquiao.
Dancing on Ice returns with a new series in January. Judges Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean are likely to return for the series. In previous years, Holly Willoughby hosted the show alongside Phillip Schofield, however, it has not been confirmed who could replace Phillip following his departure from ITV earlier this year due to his alleged falling out with a former co-star.
© GettyPhillip left This Morning on May 20
Phillip stepped down from his long-standing role as host of This Morning after tensions rose behind the scenes. He later released a statement admitting to an affair between him and the show’s production manager. Holly then released a statement explaining that she had previously questioned her colleague and close friend about the affair, but was met with denials.
“It took time to process yesterday’s news,” she wrote on Instagram. “When the reports of this relationship first came out, I asked Phil directly if it was true and was told it wasn’t. It was very painful to find out it was a lie. Holly.”
Categories: Entertaintment
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