Aljaž Škorjanec to leave Strictly Come Dancing after nine years

Aljaž Škorjanec, a professional dancer for Strictly Come Dancing becomes the second professional to quit the show this year after performing with the programme for over nine years.

Aljaž Škorjanec has danced in the BBC show Strictly Come Dancing, for the last nine years, with him tearing up after he and his partner Sara Davies were voted out in the most recent series.

Aljaž Škorjanec becomes the second professional dancer to quit the show this year with Oti Mabuse quitting to join the panellists for ITV‘s competitor show Dancing on Ice.

Though he has danced for nine years, the professional has only lifted the disco ball-shaped trophy once, when he joined the show in 2013.

The professional had been dancing since the age of five years old and had won over 19 Slovenian championships in both Latin and ballroom dancing, as well as representing Slovenia at a world level for over a decade.

However, the 32-year-old recalls that his life changed entirely when he received a phone call “on a beautiful sunny day in 2013” to offer him a permanent place on Strictly Come Dancing.

Announcing the news on Instagram, the dancer writes, “A little while ago I made the tough decision that Strictly 2021 would be my last. The show has given me an opportunity and freedom to create and express myself in front of millions of people every weekend for the last 9 years.

“The love and support I got from the team of producers was second to none.”

Škorjanec became synonymous with the show’s performance in recent years, as he partnered with celebrities ranging from BBC Radio 1 DJ Clara Amfo to presenter Alison Hammond, and most recently Dragon’s Den investor Sara Davies.

Though, during his farewell announcement, he continued by thanking “the people that watch Strictly who have been so kind to me all these years. Every comment, vote, kind message never went unnoticed. You are the reason we all do it, thank you!”

It is unknown what Aljaž Škorjanec is going to pursue next, though his humourous attempts to make dancing accessible for celebrities will definitely go amiss.