Strictly’s Carlos breaks down in tears ahead of final as Karen says show has ‘finally fixed’ her

STRICTLY Come Dancing favourites Karen Carney and Carlos Gu, got emotional over making it to the final and potentially making history.

Lioness Karen has waltzed into the final with the Strictly pro, who could become the first gay man and first Asian man to lift the Glitterball Trophy.

Karen Carney and Carlos Gu performing on Strictly Come Dancing.
Karen Carney and Carlos Gu will be dancing in Strictly’s final on SaturdayCredit: PA

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Carlos got emotional thinking about making history if he winsCredit: bbc

Strictly dancer Carlos Gu wearing sunglasses and a gold chain with a heart pendant.
Carlos could become the first gay and first Asian man to win StrictlyCredit: Chris Eades
Carlos, a dancer from China, broke down in tears during a conversation with The Sun about how his role on Strictly has helped increase representation.

He was lost for words and overcome with emotion when asked what it would mean for him to make history and Karen stepped in to help her partner explain the importance of the moment.

“Carlos is an amazing person. And that’s for me the most important thing as a partner and whatever the outcome is for any of us, first and foremost for people and he’s a wonderful person. He’s a fantastic dancer,” she told us.

Karen added: “I think what Strictly is, is it’s much more than just dancing.”

The former footballer has been open about her depression, and has credited her journey on Strictly with helping her tremendously.

“For probably the last five or six years I’ve been open and honest about how I’ve been crushed quite a lot in terms of my confidence,” Karen explained, adding that she never quite knew how to “fix” her lack of self-esteem.

“Part of me was like, ‘if I could ever get the opportunity to throw myself into what I felt would be my heart, I knew that Strictly would be the thing that would fix me.”

Karen described how she used to tune every Saturday night to watch the BBC One dancing competition which allowed her “forget about everything else.”

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“I’d fall in love with everybody and just enjoy their journeys and forget about everything,” Karen recalled.

“And I thought if I’d ever got the opportunity and had the privilege to join it, I felt like it would be the safe environment to fix me and help me again.”

Karen was right all along, because she says competing on Strictly this year has “rebuilt my confidence.”

“This guy next to me [Carlos] has definitely done that for me and it’s by far the happiest I’ve ever been,” she said.

“I’ve smiled like I’ve never smiled before and I’m forever grateful to the show and to Carlos for that.”

On Saturday, Karen, George Clarke and Amber Davies will battle it out for the Glitterball and the perfect pre-Christmas present.

And it will be new ground for whichever of their pro partners wins the title, with Carlos, Alexis Warr and Nikita Kuzmin having never triumphed.

It could be third time lucky for Carlos, who is in this third year on the show. The Chinese star finished second in his first year with Molly Rainford before achieving a respectable sixth last year with Angela Scanlon.

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Alexis is a Strictly first-timer and a debut win would be an incredible achievement.

While Nikita is in his fifth year as a show pro, with a previous best of second back in 2023 with Layton Williams.

Karen Carney and Carlos Gu dancing during the dress rehearsal for Strictly Come Dancing.
Karen has credited Strictly with ‘fixing’ her after years of mental health issues