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Nadiya Bychkova declares she and ex Kai Widdrington are ‘not friends’ following split

The pair split this summer

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Star of Strictly Nadiya Bychkova has revealed she and her ex Kai Widdrington are “not friends” after their split.

The pair remained a couple for two years before calling it a day. Despite no longer having feelings for one another, Nadiya and Kai still both have to work on Strictly together.

Nadiya Bychkova walking
Nadiya attended the Pride Of Britain Awards (Credit: Splashnews.com)

Strictly star Nadiya Bychkova is ‘not friends’ with ex Kai Widdrington

While attending the Pride Of Britain Awards last night (October 21) in London, Nadiya opened up about working with Kai following their split.

“We work together but we are not friends and that’s OK,” she told the Mirror.

Nadiya added: “One thing I can tell you is that when you see me dancing with him it will be amazing because I’m a professional.”

For Strictly’s 2024 series, Nadiya was paired with Olympic champion Tom Dean. Unfortunately, the couple didn’t go far in the competition and were eliminated first.

“It’s never nice to leave early,” she admitted. “Tom and I have had so much support from people and I get the feeling that the viewers wanted to see what he was capable of and so did I. Someone had to go and it’s just a shame it was Tom.”

However, Nadiya stated that she and Tom are “going to keep dancing”. She revealed she is “going to teach him a salsa with some big lifts”.

Kai, on the other hand, was not assigned a celebrity partner this year. Last year, he made it to Blackpool with Angela Rippon.

Nadiya Bychkova and Kai Widdrington smiling
Nadiya and Kai are not on friendly terms (Credit: Splashnews.com)

‘Kai and Nadiya seemed like the most perfect couple’

While Nadiya and Kai have happily moved on, a friend of the former couple told The Sun their split was “heartbreaking”.

“Kai and Nadiya seemed like the most perfect couple and have been so, so blissfully in love,” they said.

“But the pressures of touring – being in each other’s space 24/7, and the stress of performing a sell-out show eventually took its toll.”

The source continued: “They had been drifting emotionally for a while, and things actually came to a head during the tour – ironically called Behind The Magic – which, obviously, was incredibly problematic.”

Read more: Strictly stars Kai Widdrington and Nadiya Bychkova ‘kept apart’ at NTAs following split

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Strictly Come Dancing Lovebirds: Nadiya and Kai Reveal Secrets Behind The Curtain | Loose Women

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Fabio Magnocavallo
Freelance Writer