Greg Rutherford injury: What happened to the Dancing On Ice finalist?

GREG Rutherford has revealed the details of his nasty Dancing On Ice injury.

The Olympic champion was forced to drop out of the final in March 2024, after being tipped to win the show. Here’s everything we know.

1

What happened to Greg Rutherford?

Greg Rutherford was forced out of Dancing On Ice due to a serious injury, only hours before the live show.

The ITV show's medic appeared on-screen to break the news that the star had sustained an injury from a "really bad accident" during rehearsals.

March 25, 2024

Before heading into surgery, Greg said: “I’ve been a bit busy and obviously just recovering from the initial injury before I have the surgery that I hadn’t actually got round to talking about it.

"Long story short, I leapt through the legs of Brendyn and Colin and managed to tear all of my abs as well as herniate.

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"So I effectively gave myself a C-section."

Greg previously said: "Operation done. Recovery starts here.

"Thank you for all your messages. It was a slightly bigger op than originally hoped, but it’s all sorted.

"Surgeons really happy with his work and I’m excited to get fit again.

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"But for the next few days I’m going to be very sore and doing a lot of nothing."

March 13, 2024

On March 13, 2024, it was revealed that the Dancing On Ice star had returned home from hospital and was on painkillers as he recovered from the accident.

Greg took to Instagram to give another update on his condition and promised fans that he would reveal the extent of his injury after he had visited a specialist.

I'm seeing a specialist to figure out a plan of action and everything else, but my stomach is not in a good way and it's gonna need fixing.

Greg Rutherford

Walking around his home, Greg said: "Good morning everyone, just thought I'd check in and give you a little update.

"I'm moving around a little bit better today which is nice. Loads of people asking exactly what's happened. I'll be able to give a full rundown tomorrow.

"I'm seeing a specialist to figure out a plan of action and everything else, but my stomach is not in a good way and it's gonna need fixing."

He added that he's trying to limit his co-codamol intake as it makes him sleepy.

The star then shared his fiancée Susie Verrill's response, with her joking that his manhood had "snapped off".

Greg had hinted that he had suffered an abdominal injury, saying he had been for a scan on his stomach and revealed that it "hurt to laugh".

He told fans: "I've just this second walked in the door after having a scan on my stomach.

"I’ve just seen what Ryan’s been saying on Lorraine. First and foremost Ryan you should never have imposter syndrome.

"You were the worthy winner of the show, king of the spin from day one.

"And just an amazing human to be around, you should keep the trophy.

"I don't need to see your name on the trophy thank you very much!"

Laughing, he added: "Ow, it hurts laughing! It really hurts.

"As I said you were the worthy winner, you were incredible from day one, and it was an honour to be in that competition with you.

"I'm thrilled to bits that you won, I said it the other day and I'll say it again.

"So well done mate. We'll get together soon don't you worry. Keep that trophy."

March 10, 2024

Greg's professional skating partner Vanessa James announced the news on social media, stating: "Unfortunately Greg has sustained a significant injury this morning at rehearsals and won’t be able to perform tonight. 

She explained: “We are on our way to the hospital for Greg to get examined further and receive the treatment he needs."

A spokesman for the ITV show added: "Sadly Olympian Greg Rutherford MBE has had to withdraw from Dancing On Ice after sustaining an injury whilst in rehearsals for the final episode of the current series.

"Greg and Vanessa have been such a popular couple this series and have performed some truly memorable routines. 

“We will be helping to support Greg and wish him well with his recovery.''

They added: "We also want to thank him for being such a treasured member of the Dancing on Ice family."

His fiancée Susie also shared a message from the hospital, where he was recuperating, saying "Not quite how @gregjrutherford anticipated spending today.

"Thank you for all your kind messages."

He had been a favourite to win the 2024 series, as it had already been predicted to be the "the closest ever" final out of all 16 series.

Greg was set to skate against fellow finalists Miles Nazaire, Ryan Thomas and Adele Roberts.

Body language expert Darren Stanton believed that Greg would have been the one who came out on top.

Speaking to Betfair Casino, Stanton had said: "They have been consistently strong and connected the whole way through. 

''Greg and Vanessa’s technical abilities on the ice are connected and executed with a lot of ease.

''At this stage, they are worlds apart from Ryan and Amani in terms of their level of skill.

Stanton added: "When you see Greg and Vanessa perform, Greg is so advanced that he could be a professional skater.”

The star nearly had to pull out of the competition when he hurt his groin, but decided to carry on, and he has admitted to not feeling "fully prepared" for the final.

Speaking about his injury, the British long-jumping record holder said: "I thought I was out of the show at that point, I didn't think I was (going to be) able to carry on because it was so painful.

"And we've been effectively just letting it heal as much as we can, while still pushing. I've been really, really lucky... (it is) still healing so it still pulls ever so often (and) feels a bit tight and sore.

"But this is performance-led and I had exactly the same when I was an athlete, I think there's probably only one major in my career where I felt completely healthy.

"So you expect to have these little niggles and little issues, so you just put your mind to it and push through it."

Following the accident, a statement shared by the former athlete read: "Recovery sort of starts now... after a pretty rough first night, I'm looking forward to getting everything sorted and sewn up so I can get back to normal.

"Thank you all so much for your kind messages."

Who won Dancing On Ice 2024?

Former Coronation Street star Ryan Thomas won the final of the 2024 series alongside pro partner Amani Fancy.

The actor who is best known for playing Jason Grimshaw on the ITV soap thanked fans for keeping him in the competition.

He wrote: "Thank you to everyone that votes, sends messages.

"I read & think how lucky I am to be liked by people I’ve never even met before, there’s a lot to be said for just people being kind, it really makes a difference.”

What else has Greg Rutherford been in?

Aside from the dance competition, the athlete is no stranger to entertaining TV shows.

After his epic Super Saturday performance at the London 2012 Olympics, snaring gold in the long jump, he teamed up with gymnast Louis Smith for an episode of The Million Pound Drop Live as part of its Celebrity Games series.

A year later, he featured in an episode of Fake Reaction - a celebrity special edition of The Cube, where he won £20,000 for Battersea Dogs & Cats Home and Hula Animal Rescue. 

He also served as a panellist on Would I Lie to You?

In the same year, he was awarded a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2013 New Year Honours for services to athletics.

In 2014, he appeared in both The Great Sport Relief Bake Off and The Chase: Celebrity Special, unfortunately losing out on both shows.

Greg then tried his hand at living in a different era in Channel 4’s Time Crashers.

Speaking at the time, for all things medieval: “I spend a lot of time at home watching the History Channel; I’m a massive geek at heart.”

He then took part in his first dance competition in the form of Strictly Come Dancing in 2016, partnering with professional Natalie Lowe, before being eliminated in week nine.

Greg was then later forced to pull out of the 2017 IAAF World Athletics Championships due to an injury, but instead took the helm as a Eurosport expert analyst.

He did however win Celebrity MasterChef in 2019, adding another trophy to his collection.

Greg also revealed that he was brought up as a Jehovah's Witness while taking part in the BBC Two series Pilgrimage, where he walked the Via Francigena, an ancient pilgrimage route to Rome.

In April 2021, Greg teamed up with fellow British Olympians Nicola Adams and Kelly Smith, as well as fitness instructor Mr Motivator, to launch the Energy Fit for the Future campaign by Smart Energy GB. 

The campaign aimed to encourage people to install smart meters in their homes.

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Greg returned to Eurosport and Discovery+ in 2021, to cover the postponed 2020 Summer Olympics Games as a reporter on the ground in Japan.

Then, in October 2023, Greg was confirmed as a contestant on the 2024 series of Dancing On Ice.