Pasha Kovalev smiling / Rachel Riley smiling on This Morning
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Countdown star Rachel Riley admits she was the one to fall for Pasha Kovalev on Strictly: ‘He was the one in control’

Pasha and Rachel were on the show 11 years ago

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Countdown star Rachel Riley previously opened up about falling for her now husband, Pasha Kovalev.

Rachel and Pasha danced together on Strictly back in 2013.

Pasha Kovavlev and Rachel Riley smiling at a press event
Rachel and Pasha met on Strictly (Credit: SplashNews.com)

Countdown star Rachel Riley on Pasha romance

Back in 2013, Rachel, 38, signed up for Strictly Come Dancing. She was paired up with Pasha, and together they made it all the way to Halloween week before being eliminated.

They were the fifth couple to be booted off the show.

However, their journey together didn’t end there, as soon after, they began dating.

11 years on and the couple have got married and welcomed two daughters.

During an appearance on This Morning to celebrate 20 years of Strictly earlier this year, Rachel spoke about falling for Pasha during her time on the show.

The conversation was sparked when Cat Deeley asked about dancers and their celeb partners falling for each other while dancing together.

Countdown star Rachel Riley on ‘relinquishing control’ to Pasha

Rachel opened up about her experience falling for Pasha.

“For me, with Pasha, it was the first time I relinquished any control,” she said.

“I’m used to being the woman and being in control of things, and it was the first time ‘He’s the boss and you have to listen to him’,” she then continued.

“And obviously, you get to know someone on a far closer level than you would otherwise,” she then said.

She then said how due to her job, she was travelling a lot, meaning Pasha had to follow her to get practice in.

“It’s a strange bonding experience that you just wouldn’t get in real life,” she said. “It’s an artificial reliance on each other.”

Rachel Riley smiling on This Morning
Rachel was on Strictly in 2013 (Credit: ITV)

Rachel on therapy after Strictly

Back in 2014, Rachel revealed that she’d had to undergo therapy following her time on Strictly. She made the confession during an interview with The Guardian.

“I like doing different things. So, from doing Strictly I learned that I was a perfectionist. I got stage fright and actually had CBT [cognitive behavioural therapy],” she said at the time.

“The guy was brilliant: I didn’t realise I was a perfectionist, because I didn’t want things to be perfect and thought that’s what a perfectionist was. But it’s more that you are never satisfied with yourself,” she then continued.

“In my head I was never going to be able to achieve what I wanted to achieve, because I was never going to be perfect. So it’s just learning to have an achievable goal, a sense of what is a good outcome, because otherwise you are never satisfied,” she then added.

Read more: Inside Rachel Riley’s colourful love life – from Strictly ‘curse’ and ‘distance’ with first husband to marriage struggles with Pasha Kovalev

Countdown airs on weekdays from 2.10pm on Channel 4. 

Strictly Come Dancing Celebrates 20 Years Since Waltzing On Our Screens | This Morning

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Robert Emlyn Slater
Senior Writer