First BBC Strictly Come Dancing 2024 star 'confirmed' as Team GB athlete speaks out

Strictly Come Dancing's first contestant for the 2024 series has seemingly been confirmed. British swimmer Tom Dean has revealed he will follow in the footsteps of teammate Adam Peaty and take part in the hit dance show.

The BBC One dance contest will return to screens this autumn with Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman back as hosts and judges Craig Revel Horwood, Shirley Ballas, Anton Du Beke and Motis Mabuse also returning as Strictly celebrates its 20th birthday.

The BBC has only announced its professional line-up for the upcoming run, with reigning champion Vito Coppola, Amy Dowden, who missed the last series due to treatment for breast cancer, and Aljaz Skorjanec, who had been away from the ballroom for two years, among those ready to dance this year.

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But while there has been no official announcement on the celebrity line-up yet, Dean, 24, made the announcement for himself after reaching the final of the men’s 200 metres individual medley on Thursday night (August 1).

The three-time Olympic champion intends to seek out the wisdom of his Team GB teammate, Peaty, who finished ninth on the BBC show in 2021, alongside professional dancer Katya Jones.

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." He continued: “I’ve not seen (Adam) yet. He did brilliantly on it so I’ll be getting a few tips from him, for sure.”

Dean is the first contestant to announce they will be appearing on the