Louis Smith

Swinging, flipping and lifting are things Louis Smith does every day, but now he’s going to have to trade his pommel horse for one of the Strictly Come Dancing pro-dancers.

Louis is a talented British gymnast who won two medals at this year's Olympics. He received a silver medal in the men's pommel horse - he tied with the gold medallist, but was awarded silver based on his execution score. Louis also took bronze as part of Team GB in the men's artistic team all-around.

Louis was born in Eye, Peterborough. At the age of seven he made a choice to pursue a career in gymnastics after he turned down a choral scholarship; Louis went on to win multiple junior accolades. He excelled on the pommel horse, and perfected his technique by placing his feet into a bucket that was tied to a rope and hung from the ceiling.

In 2008 at the Beijing Olympics, Louis took bronze and silver, the first time a British athlete had been placed in an Olympic men’s gymnastic event since 1928.