Dancing On Ice’s Greg Rutherford has been forced to quit the show mere hours before the live final.
The Olympian, 37, was set to battle it all out against Ryan Thomas, Adele Roberts and Miles Nazaire to lift the trophy this Sunday night.
Yet his hopes of taking part have been shattered after he sustained a ‘significant’ injury on the morning of rehearsals.
His pro partner Vanessa James broke the news in an Instagram post on Sunday, sharing: ‘Unfortunately Greg has sustained a significant injury this morning at rehearsals and won’t be able to perform tonight.
‘We are on our way to the hospital for Greg to get examined further and receive the treatment he needs.’
Dancing On Ice ‘s Greg Rutherford has been forced to quit the show hours before the live final, his pro partner Vanessa James revealed in an Instagram post on Sunday
Earlier this week, Greg told The Mirror his time on the competition might be over after sustaining a painful groin injury four weeks ago.
‘I was gutted at first, that’s classic me, an injury right at the wrong time. But due to Sharon, the physio who works for the show, has done a tireless job to keep me going and doing well,’ said the Olympian.
‘We are currently in a situation where, yes, it is still healing and there’s a little bit of soreness and tightness. But I am able to do what we need to do. Thankfully I am here and I’m thrilled to be here as well.’
The athlete admitted the last hurdle will be attempting to do the Bolero – although he is ‘happy’ to have made it to the final regardless.
Greg remarked he was also voted best skater out of solo skate, something he called as a ‘really proud moment’.
‘All in all, thrilled to bits, I’m ignoring the fact there’s still a little bit of an injury there but that’s fine. I’m hoping the showcase, everyone loves it, and we get to do the Bolero. Then, who knows at that point, who knows!,’ he added.
Despite his recent injury, Greg doesn’t seem to let anything stop him and admitted to be in great shape after losing 7kg since joining the ITV show.
The long jump specialist also added his journey on Dancing On Ice helped him finding a great balance while eating better and training.
Gushing over his experience on the runaway series, Greg admitted he found a ‘complete love and passion’ for ice skating which he ‘didn’t expect to happen’.
The athletic sensation – who is now retired – said the show gave him a purpose for training and ‘feeling better in myself’, which he described as a ‘kick up the bum to stay fit and healthy’.
Elsewhere Ryan Thomas has said that he hopes the final of Dancing On Ice will mean his body can finally recover from undergoing intensive training while on the series.
The track athlete, 37, was set to battle it out against Ryan Thomas , Adele Roberts and Miles Nazaire to lift the winning trophy this Sunday night (pictured with Vanessa on the show)
Despite his recent injury, Greg doesn’t seem to let anything stop him and admitted to be in great shape after losing 7kg since joining the ITV show
Gushing over his experience on the runaway series, Greg admitted he found a ‘complete love and passion’ for ice skating which he ‘didn’t expect to happen
The former Coronation Street actor, 39, who played Jason Grimshaw for 16 years will battle it out on Sunday night
The actor, whose professional skate partner is Amani Fancy, told The Mirror that being nearly 40 meant his body didn’t ‘bounce back as easy’.
He said: ‘They work you hard and it’s now final week and there’s a lot to take on. And the body’s not far off coming to a standstill. I mean, it takes its toll on your body more than anything else.’
Ryan – whose brothers are Strictly Come Dancing star Adam Thomas and former Love Island contestant Scott Thomas – added that his focus was on returning to his family.
He continued: ‘I think that’s the only reason I can get through this because I know at the end, I’ve got my beautiful family to go back to.
‘I live for that, doing the normal every day, taking the kids to school, going to the park, the things I used to take for granted, I will be embracing very much.’
Ryan, shares a daughter Scarlett, 15, with his ex and former Coronation Street star Tina O’Brien, and two children with fiancee Lucy Mecklenburgh, who found fame in TOWIE.
With the end in sight, Ryan stated that the skating has been getting ‘harder and harder’.
Elsewhere Ryan Thomas also talked about the gruelling training, saying that he hopes the final of Dancing On Ice will mean his body can finally recover from undergoing intensive workout while on the series
This was most certainly true of last Sundays show which saw the celebrities skating skills pushed to the limits as they performed twice, with one dance seeing them forced to master working on wires.
Ryan’s hard work paid off as he and his dance partner bagged their highest score of the series with an impressive 38 points.
The judges were full of compliments as they praised the soap star over his ‘story telling’ and performance skills.
Motsi Mabuse branded the skate ‘joyous’ and said it helped viewers forget the hard things going on in their lives.
This Sunday’s performance will see Ryan skate to a Game Of Thrones-themed routine which he describes as a ‘real showstopper’.
This year, marks the 40th anniversary of when judges Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean won the Olympic gold.
The celebrities will perform a routine, inspired by the skating duos performance to Ravel’s Bolero in Sarajevo at the 1984 Winter Games, at the weekend.
The final of Dancing On Ice is on Sunday at 6.25pm.
