Nitro joins Strictly Come Dancing 2025

Olympic sprinter Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, known as Nitro, is announced as the first celebrity for Strictly Come Dancing 2025.

Nitro joins Strictly Come Dancing 2025

Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, the Olympic sprinter best known as Nitro on Gladiators, has been announced as the first celebrity for Strictly Come Dancing 2025. The former Team GB athlete has a decorated track career, including two Olympic appearances, three European titles and two Commonwealth titles. He previously appeared as Nitro on Gladiators in 2023 and took part in last year’s Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special with Nancy Xu. In a playful moment, he appeared in the Newsround studio under the alias Nicky Trott to talk about a study on the benefits of daily dancing, before revealing his real identity and saying he is excited to join the competition.

The show will also introduce two new professional dancers this year, Alexis Warr and Julian Caillon. The next three celebrity contestants will be announced on The One Show later on Monday. The BBC has a habit of mixing top sports stars with entertainment talent to widen the audience, and this season continues that trend.

The trend of inviting athletes to Strictly continues a long-running idea that sports credibility can boost a reality show. It can bring new viewers and fresh energy to the dance floor. At the same time, the risk is that a sports persona can overshadow the dancing itself or become a single note for viewers. The inclusion of two new pro dancers shows the show is also refreshing its staff to handle this crossover. The mix of track speed and stage performance could redefine the show's appeal this season.

If the audience embraces Nitro, the season may lean into athletic spectacle rather than purely artistic performance. That could widen the show’s cultural footprint, but it will also test how much dancing audience members value technique over star power.

Highlights

The season will test how athletes fare on the dance floor without losing their edge.