Olympian Louis Smith swaps his pommel horse for a pair of dancing shoes.

British gymnast Louis Smith is a master of his craft after winning a silver medal on the pommel horse at this year’s London 2012 Olympics, narrowly missing out on the gold on execution points.

He also formed part of the team that took the bronze in the men’s artistic team all-around at the games this year. Straight from London 2012, self-assured, determined and fresh from captaining this year’s men’s GB gymnastics team is Louis set for victory again?

 

What made you decide to sign up to Strictly this year?

It’s a very prestigious show, it’s definitely one of the best shows on TV at the moment, and I think it’s an honour as well as being great fun to be part of the show. Coming off the back of the Olympics and having been on such a high, I think this is one of the only shows that can match that in terms of the adrenalin buzz and being part of something special.

What are you looking for from your professional dance partner?

Someone to be very strict and keep me on the straight and narrow! I need someone who’s not shy about putting in the hours in training. I don’t think me being a gymnast means I’m going to do amazingly well, I’ll have to learn the routines and you can make mistakes, you can trip. I tried on the Latin dance shoes and nearly rolled my ankle! It’ll be tough but I’d like to think the girls will be fighting over me!

You are clearly competitive in your day job ? do you think you will be when it comes to Strictly too?

I am a very competitive person and I definitely want to do well. Win is a big word, and if you say that then you put yourself under a lot of pressure. But I definitely want to go all the way.