Yahoo News Strictly’s Sam Quek explains hockey dance after being called ‘butch’
The star's hockey stick became a part of her last Strictly dance
What did you miss?
Strictly’s Sam Quek said she brought hockey into her latest routine to show how proud she was of being sporty after being called “butch” when she was growing up.
The hockey star and her Strictly pro partner Nikita Kuzmin pulled out their hockey sticks on the BBC show when they performed at the weekend. Quek has now explained that she wanted to keep a spotlight on sport as well as making the point that you can be athletic as well as glamorous.
"I'm mega proud to be a hockey player and also to be a female athlete," she said during an appearance on the show’s spin-off It Takes Two.
What, how and why?
Quek was on the sofa on Friday (4 October) with Kuzmin, and told how important it was to her to make her sport a part of the Charleston they performed for the judges.
After saying how "proud" she was to be a female athlete, she explained: “I think growing up through the generations where sport wasn't cool for women and girls, or being told, 'Oh you're butch, you're not girly.' It was a really tough transition growing up.
"So hopefully by being out there, keeping sport in the limelight, doing things like Strictly. You can be glam, you can be sporty,” she said.
"Like, I am really passionate about that," Quek added.
Sam Quek and Nikita Kuzmin revealed fake tan mishap
Quek and Kuzmin also had a giggle about Kuzmin’s tan, which was pointed out by It Takes Two host Janette Manrara.
“I need to talk about Nikita's tan for a second, what’s going on here? Did you just get it done?” Manrara asked when the pair first appeared. “You are going green!” she teased.
Laughing, the dancer replied: “I might have given myself a shade too dark which means that I will need to shower tonight and hopefully look better for tomorrow.”
“Hopefully you shower every night but maybe shower extra tonight!” Manrara quipped.
Quek then chimed in to say that she narrowly avoided a fake tan blunder herself. She said: “We were actually in the tan room at the same time and I said, ‘Nikita you can go ahead of me because you are probably a bit faster' and then I had a conversation after, and actually it's probably best to get a tan after this show (It Takes Two) so I’ve still got to go and get mine.”
As they all laughed, Kuzmin pointed out that the white of his outfit probably highlighted his tan even more. “Well we will find out what it looks like tomorrow!” Manrara replied.
