Nicola Adams confirmed as part of first same-sex couple for Strictly Come Dancing 2020 line-up

An Olympic and world champion boxer, Adams took gold at London 2012 and retained her title in Rio 2016, before retiring last year with an undefeated record.

She appeared on BBC Breakfast this morning as they broke the news, revealing she asked to be paired with a female professional dancer, forming the first same-sex couple in the show's history.

"Really excited, I just can't wait to get going," she said. "Something new, big adventure, big challenge for me as well."

In classic Strictly tradition, Adams had been keeping her role on the show tightly under wraps, letting only "three people" in on the secret ahead of time.

Speaking about being part of Strictly Come Dancing's first same-sex couple, Adams said the unprecedented inclusion is "really important".

"It’s a big step for the show as well and it’s nice to see that we’re able to move on," she said. "I just can’t wait to get some dancing done really!"

Adams added: "It's definitely time for change. It's definitely time to move on and be more diverse and this is a brilliant step in the right direction. It will be nice for the LGBT community to see that there are same-sex couples on the show as well."

With no dance experience beyond her lockdown TikToks, Adams claims to have a long road ahead of her, but hopes her experience undergoing rigorous Olympic training will be an asset.

"I'm used to doing hard, long training sessions so that part should be a walk in the park. I think where I'm going to struggle is when it comes to doing the routines and getting the choreographing right."

Adams is most looking forward to dancing the Tango and Cha-Cha, adding that she doesn't mind who she is paired with as all the professional dancers are "really good".

When asked about the lockdown measures in place throughout the series, Adams hoped the Strictly team would attempt a "social distancing crowd", but appeared unsure of what the exact format would be.

The boxer joins fellow athlete Jason Bell, who played American Football for the Dallas Cowboys, as well as actress Caroline Quentin and The Wanted's Max George, singer HRVY, presenter JJ Chalmers, Radio 1 DJ Clara Amfo, GMB host Ranvir Singh, on this year's Strictly line-up.

Strictly Come Dancing returns later this year. If you're looking for something to watch tonight, check out our TV Guide.