Olympic swimmer Tom Dean MBE is one of the many star-studded celebrities who have signed up for this year’s 2024 Strictly series.
While he is used to swimming laps and winning gold medals, Tom has decided to switch it up and learn some moves for a chance to take home the glitterball trophy.
“I am taking part in Strictly Come Dancing 2024! You may have heard me accidentally say it poolside first… but now I can officially talk about how excited I am to get stuck into something new, meet some brilliant people and get dancing. Bring it on!” he said in a statement.
But who is Tom Dean? How many gold medals has he won? Is he in a relationship? Keep scrolling to find out.
Who Tom Dean is, his age, height and where he lives
Tom Dean is a British competitive freestyle swimmer. His full name is Thomas William Darnton.
Tom was born on May 2, 2000, making him 24 years old. He is 6ft 4in tall, according to Red Bull.
Tom was born in London but grew up in Maidenhead in Berkshire. He was the second of five children.
He lives and trains in Bath, Somerset, according to BBC.
Meet Tom Dean’s parents
Tom’s parents are Jacquie Hughes and Jonathan Dean. His father, Jonathan, is a property d irector for the company Peer Group plc, who are based in London.
His mum, Jacqui, works in media policy. In an interview with the PA news agency, she revealed her son took part in dance classes at school and made the final of a “Strictly equivalent” dancing competition. “I wouldn’t say he was John Travolta,” she joked.
“Him and his brothers always choreograph a really funny dance for Christmas to show to me and his sisters, which is always hilarious, which they reveal on Christmas Day, but that’s just a bit of fun.”
Tom Dean’s girlfriend
Swimmer Tom is currently in a relationship with girlfriend Charlotte Phillip, who works for NewsUK.
Tom and Charlotte have been together since at least 2023. He has previously shared pictures of her on his social media. And we’ll be keeping our eyes peeled for Charlotte in the Strictly audience!
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Where Tom Dean went to school
Tom attended Sir William Borlase’s Grammar School in Marlow, Buckinghamshire. Following his A-levels, he studied mechanical engineering at the University of Bath. After developing a passion for swimming at the age of eight, he was training at the National Centre for Swimming in Bath during his studies at uni.
During an interview with the University of Bath in 2021, Tom stated that training and studying at Bath “was a no-brainer for me”.
“There are very few universities in the UK or even the world where I would be able to train in such great facilities and also study the Mechanical Engineering course I wanted to do. Both of those coming together in such a beautiful city, there was nowhere else that even crossed my mind and it has worked out really well for me,” he continued.
“I took a year out of my studies for the 2019-20 Olympic season, to focus all my time and energy on training for Tokyo 2020. Unfortunately it was postponed for a year but I was able to put back my return to studies for another year and fortunate enough that the University has supported me throughout that period.”
How many Olympic gold medals has Tom Dean won?
Tom Dean is a triple Olympic gold medallist. At the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Tom won big, winning gold in the 200m freestyle and 4x200m freestyle.
At the Summer Olympics in Paris this year, Tom won his third gold medal in the 4x200m freestyle.
“I don’t think you can put it into words. This is what we all dream of,” he told BBC about his recent win. “This is what I have been dreaming of for three years since we won. We are the first team with the same quartet to defend an Olympic [swimming] title – it’s incredible.
“Even more special was having my family and friends and the crowd and that is what we do it for. Everyone watching at home, all the GB fans up in the stands – it is what we do it for.”
Tom has also won medals at the Commonwealth Games, World Championships, and European Championships throughout his career.
Tom Dean on Strictly 2024
Before the BBC confirmed Tom was competing during the 2024 series of Strictly, he let slip ahead of the announcement that he had signed up.
“Naturally you want to take a break after you’ve had a full Olympic cycle and the opportunity arose. I thought it would be really exciting to try something a bit different. I’ll be doing that and straight back into training after it,” he revealed in an interview.
Tom admitted he might be reaching out to fellow swimmer Adam Peaty, who competed on the show in 2016 and finished in ninth place, for some advice.
“It’s something to look forward to. I’ve not seen [Adam Peaty] yet. He did brilliantly on it so I’ll be getting a few tips from him, for sure. I don’t do too well out of water in gravity sports. I’m throwing myself into it and I know what a hard day’s training is like so I’m looking forward to it,” he added.
“I guess we’ll find out. It’s something to look forward to and once I finish this, back home, relax a bit with the family and then we crack on end of August time. It’s exciting.”
Strictly stars on Saturday September 14 at 7.20pm on BBC One.
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