The mother of British swimming champion Tom Dean has said he will have his “eyes on the prize” during Strictly Come Dancing, but will need to work on his “land legs” for the TV contest.
Jacquie Hughes said her son has already got the discipline, fitness and strength to do well on the BBC flagship show, but hopes it will also give people a chance “to see the fun side” of Dean, when he is not in “professional swimmer mode”.
The 24-year-old’s appearance on the dancing contest comes after he celebrated his third Olympic gold medal following success in Paris.
Speaking of his previous dance experience, Ms Hughes told the PA news agency that Dean participated in classes at school and made the final of a “Strictly equivalent” dancing competition – “but I wouldn’t say he was John Travolta”, she said.
“Him and his brothers always choreograph a really funny dance for Christmas to show to me and his sisters, which is always hilarious, which they reveal on Christmas Day, but that’s just a bit of fun,” the 61-year-old told PA.
“I would say swimming was his natural talent, but he is very game.”
Dean was the latest face announced to appear on Strictly, a week after he accidentally confirmed rumours after reaching the final of the men’s 200m individual medley at the Olympics.
Ms Hughes, who works in media policy, described it as “pretty low” to ask about Strictly rumours while Dean was concentrating on the Olympics.
“He’s in the Olympics focusing on a once every four years event,” she told PA.
“He has cameras in his face and microphones in his face, three, four, five times a day, every time he steps in and out of the pool there’s media there asking him about the race.
“So, to ask him when he’s just come out of a race about a competition, a TV competition later in the summer, was just pretty low.
“It’s a relentless period leading up to the Games and during the Games, so to even think about, never mind be asked questions about anything else, was a bit low.”
Ms Hughes said Dean’s agent told the BBC the British swimmer is under a different “level of media scrutiny” compared to his Strictly co-stars, and the broadcaster was “cool about it”.
Meanwhile, Dean’s mother said he had “already decided he was going to take the rest of the year out of the water” before the Strictly opportunity came along.
“I think, for him, the chance to do something completely different was just too good to miss,” she said.
“He’s already got the discipline, he’s already got the fitness, he’s already got the strength.
“What he hasn’t got is land legs, so he’s going to have to strengthen his ankles and his knees and his feet, but he’s always up for something fun and something a bit different.”
Dean’s participation in the show comes amid a storm of controversy over the alleged treatment of contestants, but Ms Hughes said she was “not at all” concerned for her son.
“He’s used to incredibly intense and strict training, he’s used to being told what to do,” she told PA.
“He knows what it takes to be at the very top of your game in anything that you do and Tom, in turn, will always be super respectful of anyone he’s working with, that’s just his nature.
“It’s obviously a highly intensive thing that you’re trying to do with people and obviously it should always be done with respect.
“But it’s tough, it’s going to be tough, and I think it must be fairly shocking if you are exposed to that type of regime and it’s not what you’re used to.”
Ms Hughes presumed show bosses will match him up with “one of the taller” professional dancers, before describing Dean as “very competitive naturally”.
“He will take it very, very seriously, and he’s used to focusing on one outcome only, which is winning, so I think that will serve him in good stead,” she told PA.
“I think if people can see who he is as a personality and warm to his big personality, I think he’s got a good chance of going all the way, and that would just be awesome, and I know that’s what he will want.
“He won’t want to just be like, ‘well I gave it my best’, he’ll have his eyes on the prize.”
Ms Hughes said her personal ambition was for Dean’s personality to shine through on the popular TV show.
“I want other people to see the fun side of Tom, he’s got a big personality…you see him in his very professional swimmer mode, and he’s very articulate, and he gives great interviews, and he’s very thoughtful about the sport.
“And I think I just want people to see the other side of him, see what a bigger personality he is and I think Strictly is great for that, because it’s about the person.”
Touching on his triumph at the Olympics, Ms Hughes said “thank goodness” the men’s 4×200 metres freestyle relay, which saw Dean and Team GB win gold, was at the beginning of the competition because “there was a lot of illness that spread through the camp”.
She said Dean was “beaming from ear to ear” after winning the race, adding “the fact we could see him and hug him after the medal ceremony was just the best” after his win during the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo was during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Dean, James Guy, Matt Richards and Duncan Scott made history becoming the first swimming team ever to defend an Olympic relay title with the same quartet, having won the same race in Tokyo 2020.
