BBC Strictly star Tom Dean broke rules before show even began

Swimming sensation Tom Dean broke Strictly Come Dancing rules before the show had begun, after making an announcement following his Olympic success in Paris.

Emulating fellow swimmer Adam Peaty, who took on BBC's hit dance contest in 2021 and secured ninth place with partner Katya Jones, the 24-year-old revealed his plans soon after qualifying for the men's 200 metres individual medley finals.

Although the BBC typically maintains secrecy around its full cast until the official reveal, the Bath olympian confirmed his involvement earlier than usual, reports OK!

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Looking up to his Team GB colleague Adam, 29, whose performance on the show was a crowd-pleaser, Tom expressed his reasons behind the decision.

He said: "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. It's something to look forward to."

In anticipation of the upcoming series, he admitted: "I've not seen [Adam] yet. He did brilliantly on it so I'll be getting a few tips from him, for sure."

Despite being a swimming sensation for the UK, Tom confessed he's not quite as confident without the support of water, reports the Mirror. He shared: "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.

"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."

At the Tokyo 2020 Games, not only did Tom gain the title in the men's 200m freestyle, but he also joined forces with teammates James Guy, Matt Richards, and Duncan Scott in the thrilling men's 4x200m freestyle relay final. Together, they successfully defended their Olympic title in Paris. with their stunning victory reflecting an unparalleled defence of their relay crown.

All eyes are on Tom after his recent Strictly commitment amidst a swirling storm of debate regarding the BBC show's treatment of its talent.

The Corporation is set to disclose findings from a supposed internal enquiry, initiated by concerns raised by Amanda Abbington, 50, against former dance partner Giovanni Pernice, 33.

Abbington accused Giovanni of "bullying" and exhibiting "aggressive behaviour" towards her during last year's edition of Strictly. Despite the claims, Giovanni has denied any insinuations of "abusive or threatening behaviour".

Following Amanda's candid interview on Channel 4 News, the BBC issued a statement saying: "Anyone involved in a complaint has a right to confidentiality and fair process and therefore it would be inappropriate to comment further on individuals. However, when issues are raised with us we always take them extremely seriously and have appropriate processes in place to manage this. As we have said before, we would urge people not to indulge in speculation."

They continued, "More generally, the BBC and BBC Studios takes duty of care extremely seriously. Our processes on Strictly Come Dancing are updated every year, they are kept under constant review and last week we announced additional steps to further strengthen welfare and support on the show."