Graham and partner Yebin Mok won't be taking part in the launch show...
Dancing on Ice 2021 kicks off this weekend, but unfortunately contestant Graham Bell won't be taking part in the launch show on Sunday night. Injuries happen on dance competitions, and it was confirmed that Graham's partner Yebin Mok suffered a nasty injury during practice.
Yebin suffered a deep wound on her leg from a skating blade that, meaning she has to take time off the ice while she recovers from the injury.
Explaining what happened, Graham said, "I fell when we were training on Monday and Yebin my pro-dance partner fell onto the back of my skate. She was cut quite badly on the shin and needed an operation to clean and stitch up the wound.
"She spent Monday night in Watford hospital and was released yesterday, luckily there was no nerve or tendon damage."
Graham will now be partnering with Karina Mana while Yebin recovers from her injury. He added, "It's going to be really tough learning our routines again with someone new, but Yebin will be on hand to coach us both. It is now a massive incentive for me to stay in the show so that I can get Yebin back on the ice."
The news was also shared to Dancing on Ice's official Twitter account, where they wished her a speedy recovery. They didn't confirm exactly when she'd be able to return.
Speaking on Wednesday's episode of This Morning, Holly Willoughby, who presents Dancing on Ice, said, "This week Olympic skier Graham Bell and his partner Yebin had a freak accident, which resulted in her having a laceration on her leg."
And co-host Phillip Schofield added, "We had a Zoom meeting yesterday with the team and they showed us a picture that we cannot show you on TV. Holly couldn't even look at it, she had to look away – and it was a very nasty stab wound from an ice blade. You could see the tendons, it's a very dangerous show."
Rufus Hound will take Graham's place on Sunday's launch saw, with Graham debuting the following week.
Dancing on Ice kicks off on 17th January on ITV1 at 6pm.
