Ellie Simmonds has revealed her birth mum first realised who she was when she watched the swimmer win Paralympic gold. The Strictly star began searching for her blood family last year.
Ellie, who was born with achondroplasia, the most common form of dwarfism, was put up for adoption at just 10 days old after medics told her mum the tot would be ridiculed and seen as "evil" and "stupid".
Despite being devastated to find out that her mum gave her away, it didn't stop her from wanting to find her biological mother, the Mirror reports. The star, 28, managed to track down her long-lost relative and the pair were reunited for the first time in nearly three decades.
Although she had last seen her daughter as a newborn, Ellie's mum had recognised her during her rise to stardom at the Paralympics. She had kept the same name she was given at birth, and with her specific condition, her mum put two and two together while watching the competition - but didn't reach out to her daughter out of respect.
Ellie opened up about her experience meeting her birth mum for the first time on This Morning alongside hosts Holly Willoughby and Craig Doyle. Before the monumental moment, Ellie agreed to meet her mum for just 15 minutes out of fear that it would be too much.
Surprisingly to Ellie though, after laying eyes on one another, she and her long lost mum embraced "for what seemed an eternity" before they sat down to have a five-hour discussion about each others lives.
The sports star said she now has a new-found sense of purpose after taking the brave steps to find her mum - after being showered with support from her adoptive parents, Valerie and Steve.
Ellie said: "I was so nervous about meeting her - I was so stressed. But when I did meet her, I could immediately see the similarities between us both.
"We embraced the minute we met and ended up chatting for five hours straight. We have so many similar personality traits and we have the same eyes and use the same facial expressions."
And Ellie gushed that she was so thankful that her mum gave her the time and respect to go looking for her first, after spotting her winning gold.
Ellie also admitted that finally meeting her mother put "all of the pieces of the puzzle" together as she revealed that her birth mum shared so much love and appreciation for her adoptive parents for raising her and allowing her to be the incredible woman she is today.
Ellie Simmonds: Finding My Secret Family, ITV1, Thursday, July 6, 9pm.
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