Dame Sarah Storey Joins Strictly Come Dancing!

Dame Sarah Storey is the seventh celebrity announced for  Come Dancing 2026, which is set to begin in September. 

The paralympian, 48, who announced her retirement last week, started her career as a swimmer and competed at four Paralympic Games before switching to cycling.

The athlete was born with an under-developed left hand as her arm was tangled in the womb.

Her dancing stint comes a year after she was last January. 

Strictly announced the news on Friday via @bbcstrictly's official social channels on Instagram, , and . 

Sarah said: 'Embarking on a new challenge so soon after stepping down as an athlete is hugely exciting. 

'I have always loved watching Strictly and my daughter Louisa is a very talented dancer, so to be able to learn from the best and hopefully understand even more about her world, is incredibly motivating! I can’t wait to get started!'

Sarah is set to join Will Best, Lacey Turner, Dani Dyer, Delta Goodrem, Chris Appleton and Cach Mercer in the 2026 Strictly Come Dancing line-up.

Last week, Strictly faced backlash over the signing of Love Island star Cach, who is also a professional dancer.

The influencer and model, 25, was announced as the fifth celebrity to be taking part in this year's series.

And while most fans know him for winning last year's Love Island, others had to turn to to find out why he is famous.

Some fans shared their displeasure due to Cach's dance background, echoing the backlash Strictly stars and both received in previous years.

Cach has earned a legion of social media fans on TikTok for showcasing his Afrobeat, hip hop and street dance moves.

As well as modelling and DJing, Cach puts on dance classes for aspiring dancers. 

Fans fumed: 'Had to google who he was, and the first thing that came up was 'professional dancer'!!! wtf @bbcstrictly', 

'He's a professional dancer', 'Sorry but the inevitable who? Never heard of him', Can we get some proper celebrities? Never heard of him', 'extremely unfair on other contestants'. 

Cach won Love Island in 2025 alongside his ex-girlfriend Toni Laites before splitting seven months later.

Strictly Come Dancing returns to screens later this year and the rest of the lineup will be announced this summer.

It comes after it was revealed Dani is also making her Strictly comeback.

The TV star has been confirmed as the second celeb to take part in the 2026 series of Strictly Come Dancing one year after she was forced to quit the 2025 run after fracturing her ankle during rehearsals.

Dani said: 'I am so excited to be back in the ballroom this September!'

'I just cannot wait to get my dancing shoes back on and hopefully this time around I can actually make it to week one! I'm just over the moon and cannot wait to find out who else is doing it!'

Upon her exit last year, BBC bosses confirmed the door would be left open for 'heartbroken' Dani to return for the 2026 series as they said they 'hope to welcome her back to the ballroom in the future'.

Meanwhile Lacey was the first contestant announced for 2026 as she is currently on an extended break from playing her iconic character Stacey Slater in the soap and is keen to use her time to train for the BBC competition, which will start in September.

In a video shared to Instagram, Lacey admitted she is 'terrified' to be taking part in the BBC show, which will return to screens in September, and can't wait to 'learn a new skill'.

She said: 'Hello it's Lacey Turner I can't quite believe that I'm actually saying this but I want to let you in on a little secret.

'This September I will be taking my little toes onto the dancefloor to do Strictly Come Dancing.

'I can't believe it. I'm so excited and terrified at the same time but I've had so many friends do Strictly and I thought it was about time that I plucked up the courage and made my way onto that dance floor. So, there you go the secret is out, see you there in September.'