DANCING With The Stars pro Laura Nolan has revealed she has gone on a “smile offensive” with partner Rhys McClenaghan.
The Olympic gymnast, 25, is topping the scoreboard on Sunday nights — but needs to “go out and have fun” during the dancing to make it look like he’s enjoying himself.
Dancer Laura Nolan is going on a ‘smile offensive’ with partner Rhys McClenaghan[/caption]
The couple got rave reviews for their performance last weekend[/caption]
Rhys said he is trying to switch off the serious mode he goes into for gymnastics[/caption]
Laura told The Irish Sun: “With gymnastics Rhys has been going out and doing something precise.
“There’s no element of performance in it.
“Whereas with dance you are showing off the routine you’ve learnt but you also have to let go. So facial expressions has been something we have been working on for the last few weeks. You have to have fun and enjoy the performance on the night.”
Rhys confirmed: “I’m definitely trying to enjoy it more because when I’m doing gymnastics I have to switch into a serious mode that no one is there in the arena watching me. Whereas doing DWTS, we have the same pressure as competing but I need to enjoy the routines we’re doing.
“That’s when I tend to get the best results. But seeing my family in the audience when I’m walking out on to the dance floor puts a big smile on my face.”
The pommel horse champion, from Newtownards, Co Down, revealed how entering the RTE dance show has been the perfect distraction for him after winning gold for Team Ireland at the Paris Olympics last summer.
Rhys said: “What better way to celebrate after winning an Olympic gold medal than dancing for three months straight. So I have been really busy since coming back from Paris.
“But that’s me focusing on things outside of the gym. It’s always been in my plan that after a successful Olympics, I would take the opportunity to enjoy life outside the gym. And just celebrate in the manner of being busy.”
But just like he did in Paris, the 25-year-old is back inspiring the nation again but in a more fun way.
Last weekend he dressed up as superhero Spider-Man on DWTS.
Rhys told us: “I was living out a childhood dream because I used to dress up as Spider-Man as a kid.
Scoring the first 10s of the season, Rhys and Laura’s Charleston to the theme from Spider-Man drew rave reviews from the judges with Karen Byrne telling them: “The whole thing was perfect. The traditional steps within were just unbelievable.”
The routine sent Rhys and Laura to the top of the leaderboard and they are now heavily tipped to lift the Glitterball trophy in the final.
But Rhys said he had no idea the impact his Spider-Man routine would have on kids across Ireland.
COPYING MOVES
He said: “I had so many kids watching around the country copying my moves. I walked out of the gym on the Monday and saw five kids in Spider-Man outfits.
“It’s really touching when something like that happens. That’s when you realise how important this show is.”
Tomorrow night is Dedication Week, with the dancers bigging up the people who have inspired them the most. Rhys has chosen to dedicate his jive in honour of his coach Luke Carson.
Luke coached Rhys throughout his career from the lows of coming off the pommel horse mid-routine in Tokyo 2020 to achieving his lifelong dream of winning gold in Paris 2024.
‘IMPORTANT TO GIVE BACK’
Rhys told us: “It’s really important to give back to my coach.
“Without Luke my gold medal would not exist. It’s the athletes who get the medals around their necks but I wouldn’t have had any success at all without Luke. I would never have brought a gold medal back here without him.”
There are no eliminations for DWTS this weekend.
However the couple who receive the highest combined points from the judges and public will earn immunity from the following week’s first dance-off of the series.
- DWTS is on RTE One at 6.30pm tomorrow.
Rhys has chosen to dedicate his jive in honour of his coach Luke Carson.[/caption]
