Devastated AJ Odudu could miss out on the Strictly Come Dancing final on Saturday after suffering a ‘traumatic’ injury.
The TV presenter, 33, was one of the favourites to win the coveted Glitterball trophy in the live final of the BBC show, but now her future is in doubt as she’s unable to stand on her right foot after becoming injured during training.
On Monday, AJ and pro dance partner Kai Widdrington were rehearsing one of the three routines they’ll be performing in the final, but their session was cut short after the star became injured.
She missed training on Tuesday, and on Wednesday, she confirmed reports of her injury with an emotional appearance on It Takes Two.
AJ told host Janette Manrara that she had no idea what happened, as the pain came on ‘so quickly’ which prompted her to vomit.
“I'm upset because I've suffered an injury, I don't know when it happened but essentially I've got issues with my joint, I've suffered some traumatic injury to my ligaments, there's a lot of inflammation,” the visibly upset star explained.
“I can't pinpoint when it happened during training, in fact we felt really positive after training on Monday, I felt fine.
“But the pain came on so quickly and acutely, that I actually projectile vomited,” AJ added, as her voice faltered.
“I'm unable to stand on my right foot and I can't stand up without crutches, and I'm really upset, I'm sorry,” she said while wiping tears from her eyes.
“I'm upset because we were so excited on Monday, we've got three amazing dances that we really, really want to perform,” AJ added, as Kai comforted her.
She was set to compete in the final on Saturday alongside EastEnders actress Rose Ayling-Ellis and her partner Giovanni Pernice, and former Great British Bake Off winner John Whaite and his dance pro Johannes Radebe.
The BBC show created new guidelines for this year’s series amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, as three of the celebrities were struck down by the virus.
McFly guitarist Tom Fletcher was forced to miss a week of the competition due to contracting Covid, followed by Judi Love, and then Sara Davies.
Former rugby player Ugo Monye missed a week due after suffering a back injury, but he was able to return the following week.
Fans have suggested that if AJ was forced to withdraw from the competition, she would automatically finish in third place, leaving Rose and John to battle it out for the trophy.
Others have suggested Rhys Stephenson, who was eliminated last week, should be allowed to return to compete in the final.
