Christopher Dean has been in hospital after suffering a 'freak accident' at home just days before the new series of Dancing on Ice starts.
Skating legend Chris, who became world famous when he and professional partner Jayne Torvill won gold in the 1984 Winter Olympics for their iconic routine to Bolero. Torvill and Dean added to their Olympic medal haul a decade later in Lillehammer, when the won bronze.
For the past 17 years they have been a constant presence on ITV as trainers and judges on Dancing on Ice. However, disaster struck for Chris with just days to go until the long-running show's return this weekend, as he ended up needing treatment in hospital for a broken finger after taking a tumble in the dark at home.
Opening up on the injury, Chris at first joked that it was a result of attempting a daring skating move on the ice, before coming clean.
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Sharing a photo of his bandaged finger online, he wrote: "We were trying the Iron Lotus, but ended up doing a Half Nelson [referencing a fictional move in Blades of Glory] or did I just fall over a suitcase in the middle of the night."
His photo quickly got plenty of comments, with one fan joking that he should have went with the original excuse, replying: ""I would go with the iron lotus story. Makes it look more heroic." Another reacted: "Thank goodness it was only your finger," with a third telling him'; "I hope you’re on the mend soon."
Chris' injury comes after Dancing on Ice presenter Phillip Schofield opened up on his injury concerns for what he dubbed the 'dangerous' show. When asked if he had any advice or this year's contestants, Phillip said: "Please don’t hurt yourself. Please don’t fall over in a way that prevents you from actually doing the show! First and foremost, learn how to fall because it’s so easy to forget that this is a really dangerous show. Those skates are blades!"
He added: "We’ve seen some horrible injuries so that is the last thing you want. Skate within your means until your pro says you can go beyond that."
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