TOWIE star Pete Wicks has revealed that he is battling through the pain of three broken ribs as he gears up for his latest challenge – Strictly Come Dancing.
Despite the severity of his injuries, Pete is determined to continue with the competition.
Pete Wicks on Strictly 2024
The 36-year-old star developed this painful injury while participating in Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Win. The popular challenge show was filmed in New Zealand in July 2023.
This marked Pete’s second attempt at competing. He was previously forced to withdraw in 2022 due to a stunt gone awry, which also resulted in broken ribs.
Recounting the incident on his Staying Relevant podcast, Pete recalled how he knocked himself unconscious after a high-impact collision with water from a helicopter jump.
I broke three ribs (in SAS), and my ribs are still broken, which is going to be a pain.
After being rescued, it was confirmed that he had sustained multiple broken ribs.
Despite the lingering injury, Pete is not letting it hinder his participation in the BBC dance competition. “I’m 36, and I haven’t been to a gym in eight years. I broke three ribs (in SAS), and my ribs are still broken, which is going to be a pain,” he said on his podcast.
Pete also expressed empathy towards his dance partner, due to his perfectionist approach.
“I feel sorry for whoever my partner is,” he quipped. “I have an issue with having to get things right, so I know what people say – when they do these things — that you can practice as much as you want.
“It’s the worst thing that you can say to someone like me because I will have that poor girl there for 15 hours a day. Literally. I’ll be saying, ‘We can just sleep here – you don’t need to go home’ because of the fear of getting something wrong on TV or messing up.”
Strictly 2024 news
The announcement of Pete’s participation in the 2024 Strictly line-up has reportedly caused a stir with Channel 4.
“Channel 4 were fuming when Pete was revealed as part of this year’s Strictly cast. It’s the second time they’ve been screwed over by another reality show,” a TV source told The Sun.
Nonetheless, Pete expressed his mixed emotions of excitement and anxiety over Strictly on Kiss FM. “It’s a mixture of excited and absolutely petrified, it’s fear, you can see straight into my soul,” he shared.
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