Strictly’s Claudia Fragapane: ‘Louise Redknapp is like a mum to me!’

The Olympic gymnast tells us how she's too busy to date

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by Jane Oddy |
Published on

She's made it to the Strictly Come Dancing semi-final, but all the hard work waltzing on the dance floor means that Olympic gymnast Claudia Fragapane has no time for love.

The 19-year-old tells Closer: "I'm too busy for a boyfriend at the moment - I'm training all the time! I've got a lot on my plate. But I don't mind, I'm loving every minute of the show.

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"My dad joked that I was banned from having a boyfriend until I was 25 but he didn't mean it. He'll totally support me if I do have one."

And at 4ft 6, Claudia has only one requirement for a man - they must be taller than her. She laughs: "At my height that isn't hard really - most people are!"

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Competing with new pro dancer AJ Pritchard, 21, the pocket rocket is the youngest on the show and admits that the other contestants all want to mother her - in particular, former Eternal star and mum-of-two, Louise Redknapp, 42.

She says: "Louise is like a second mum to me which I love! She's beautiful, down-to-earth, and looks after me. Ed Balls was definitely the dad of the group.

"He's so funny and makes me laugh. We're really like a big family - and I'm the baby. I get spoilt - that's my kind of family!"

Bristol-based Claudia, who competed at the Rio Olympics, says that Strictly has been life-changing for her: "My confidence has grown so much. I'd never even taken a train on my own until now!

"It's completely changed me as a person. Plus, I can take all the dance techniques I've learnt and put them back into my gymnastics. Strictly has inspired me to do the 2020 Olympics now and I'm working towards that. I want to go for gold!"

Are you rooting for Claudia to win Strictly Come Dancing 2016? Let us know on Facebook and Twitter (@CloserOnline).

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