Ellie, who stands at 4ft tall, said that despite being nervous and finding the competition tough so far, she wants to do it all over again.
By Folayemi Oladimeji
Ellie Simmonds has sadly revealed that she has ‘already’ been trolled online following her first performance on Strictly Come Dancing on Saturday night.
Eleanor May Simmonds is a British former Paralympian swimmer who competed in S6 events. She came to national attention when she competed in the 2008 Summer Paralympics in Beijing, winning two gold medals for Great Britain.
She was the youngest member of the team, at the age of 13. In 2012, she was again selected for the Great Britain squad, this time swimming at home games in London. She won another two golds in London, including setting a World Record in the 400m freestyle, and a further gold medal at the Rio Paralympics in 2016, this time setting a world record for the 200m medley.
The Paralympic swimmer, 27, has achondroplasia dwarfism which causes a normal-sized torso and short limbs.
She had detailed her fears of being in the dance-off and getting no votes ahead of her Cha Cha Cha to Dance by DNCE., and despite getting compliments from all four judges and gaining 26 points in her first week – she was left feeling deflated after seeing comments from trolls on social media.
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Ellie, who stands at 4ft tall, said that despite being nervous and finding the competition tough so far, she wants to do it all over again.
She was worried about signing up for the show, particularly because of the big height difference between her and partner Nikita Kuzmin – and what keyboard warriors might have to say about it.
She told The Sun: “I’ve had it already. Some people have said, ‘How’s the dwarf going to dance?” It’s sad and it does get to you.”
Ellie told the publication that she was convinced to take part in the show with the help of her boyfriend Matt, who also has dwarfism.
As Britain’s youngest Paralympian, entering the Beijing 2008 games aged just 13, Ellie Simmonds has also made Strictly history.
She is the first person with dwarfism to take part, with the athlete stating ahead of her appearance: ‘If I can do it, people watching can too”.