Jonnie: It’s crazy to win praise but paso doble awaits

JONNIE PEACOCK says it is “crazy” to win praise from the Strictly Come Dancing judges as he prepares to take on his nightmare performance — the paso doble.

The athlete, 24, stunned the judges with his jive last week. He was given a respectable score of 29, with Bruno Tonioli, adding: “Trust me, you’re good.”

Peacock, who won gold in the T44 event at the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Paralympics, told the Standard: “I have never danced before in my life. The closest thing I had done was exercise routines, which have a bit of rhythm. But this is harder as you actually have to look good doing it. You have to be graceful, which I don’t really do.

“The jive went down really well. It is crazy the judges really liked it and I did not expect that at all.”

He felt less confident about his forthcoming dance. This Saturday, he and partner Oti Mabuse, pictured, will dance the paso doble. “It is my nightmare dance,” Peacock confessed. “You have to be super-arrogant and put so much feeling and emotion in to it. For me, that is a nightmare, totally not what I am good at. I suppose I will have to channel something or someone to pull it off. But I always try to be myself. I have never created a character before.”

Peacock has developed a dance-inspired HIIT The Floor 100 workout to celebrate the opening of The Gym Group’s 100th gym in Feltham. Visit thegymgroup.com