Every woman11 deserves to feel sexy
Dancing on Ice star Ekin-Su defends THAT sizzling outfit
DANCING on Ice star EkinSu Cülcüloglu has vowed to stay sexy to empower other women.
The Love Island winner sparked a storm of protest last month after she took to the ice in a daring costume that looked like a high-cut bikini.
Ekin-Su was trolled over the Britney Spears-inspired outfit – but she refuses to apologise for her debut routine on the ITV skating show.
The 28-year-old said: “I feel like every woman should feel sexy. “It doesn’t matter who you are, what your age is or how you look.
“It’s not about cleavage, legs and bums, it’s about the knowledge you have, the way you carry yourself, the way you speak to people… it’s knowing who you are and embracing it. That is sexy.”
Dancing on Ice host Holly Willoughby dubbed Ekin-Su’s routine with Brendyn Hatfield the show’s “sexiest dance ever”.
But Ofcom received 112 complaints from people who thought the reality star’s sparkly unitard was too racy for a family show – then the trolls waded in.
Ekin-Su appeared in a Turkish soap opera before winning last year’s Love Island with her partner
Davide Sanclimenti, 27. But she admits the Dancing on Ice drama really got to her.
She said: “I was very upset. Instead of people saying, ‘Look at her, look at her confidence’, I had negative feedback.
“I’m not going to lie, I was crying a lot. I went home and cried in Davide’s arms.
“On Love Island, people were criticising me but we had no phones so I had no idea what was happening.
“Now it’s in my face. Someone sends me a DM, someone sends me a tweet and I see it. It’s everywhere and it’s a lot to take.”
But Ekin-Su, who has more than 3million followers on social media, is determined to stand up to the trolls.
She said: “I’m not going to just back off… I’m going to be confident again. I’m going to fight. “I’m here, I’m ready, I’m going to shine – and I’m going to be me again.”
On last week’s show, Ekin-Su took a more conservative approach and dressed like Maria von Trapp for her Sound of Music routine.
She was visibly touched when judge Oti Mabuse told her: “I want you to remember to stay true to yourself. You’re such a beautiful young girl. It’s not a bad thing to be sexy.”
Ekin-Su replied: “You know what? I really needed that.”
I’m not going to back off.. I’m ready to shine EKIN-SU IS DETERMINED TO BEAT ONLINE TROLLS