Nile Wilson and his skating partner Olivia Smart have been crowned the champions of ITV show Dancing On Ice after a dazzling final which saw a string of perfect scores.
The Olympic gymnast, 27, saw off competition from reality star Joey Essex, who came second, and drag queen The Vivienne, who finished in third place, during Sunday's grand finale.
After being declared the winner, Wilson said: "If Dancing On Ice has anything to say of entertainment, we’ve got 11 human beings all different shapes and sizes stood on this stage tonight with an allocated time to get good at something and we proved that we can do that.
"So what an inspirational show. If you put your mind to something and you work hard you can achieve anything you want."
He also thanked everyone who voted for them and said he will be spending the night celebrating with the people who he "loves the most".
TV personality Essex, 32, congratulated the couple following their win, saying: "I’m so happy for Nile and Olivia. I missed a few steps but literally, the best time of my life, thank you, everyone."
The three finalists all skated an original routine and performed in a skate battle to whittle it down to two remaining contestants.
After The Vivienne was voted off, she said: "It’s been the most amazing experience. I’m so used to living out of a suitcase on a tour bus or somewhere and this has given me structure in my life and I’ve got fit and I’ve met the most amazing friend in colleague."
Wilson and Essex then went head-to-head as they each performed the famous Bolero, which won Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean the gold medal at the 1984 Winter Olympics, to decide the winner.
After all the finalists had performed their first dance, which were choreographed by Torvill and Dean, they were neck and neck on the leaderboard – having all secured perfect 40s.
Wilson showed off his gymnastic abilities in their pirate-inspired routine as he performed a handstand on parallel bars suspended in the air as well as the infamously difficult headbanger, the first time a male celebrity has attempted the move.
Reflecting on the routine, Dean said: "I’m speechless almost. We wanted to capitalise on his gymnastic skills and his athleticism and I think he did that."
Torvill added that she feels Wilson definitely deserved a 10 as she felt it was the best she had seen him perform the routine.
Source: Press Association
