Strictly's Nicola Adams' horror boxing injuries including torn eyeball and broken back
The Olympic Gold medal boxer, 37, has endured a number of horror injuries throughout her successful stint in the ring
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It's no surprise that boxing is a physically brutal sport, but Nicola Adams knows first-hand just how bad some of the injuries can be.
The Olympic Gold medal boxer, 37, has endured a number of horror injuries throughout her successful stint in the ring, but some of the injuries were close calls as they could have ended her career.
Nicola - who will join this year's star line-up on Strictly Come Dancing - has opened up about the gruelling injuries she suffered.
Shockingly, women's boxing only became an Olympic sport in 2012 - but this proved to be a lucky situation for Nicola, who broke her back in 2008.
The injury kept her away from the boxing ring for months, meaning that not only did she miss out on practice, she actually struggled to move at all.
Luckily, she managed to recover - and four years later became an Olympic gold medalist after defeating world number one Ren Cancan in the flyweight final.
It was then when Nicola defied all odds, and put her name on the map for even those who don't follow boxing.
Four years later, she took home another Olympic gold medal in Rio de Janeiro - proving that her previous win was no fluke.
The win saw her vow to return to compete in the 2020 Olympic games, but horror struck in 2019 - just two years after she turned pro.
Nicola endured yet another gruelling injury after tearing her eyeball during a fight.
The ordeal left her fearing for her eyesight as there was a likelihood of her losing it completey.
The injury forced Nicola to retire from the sport that year.
Speaking to The Telegraph back in March, Nicola insisted that she never really planned on taking part in Tokyo's Olympics that were set to take place this year.
Instead, she said she had planned to retire after another "two or three fights".
She explained: "The eye injury just moved things forward quicker than planned. Fortunately, I already had a plan already in place."
Although Nicola is done with the boxing ring, she's now taking her coordination skills onto the dance floor.
The athlete is set to link up with a female professional dancer on Strictly next month.
The Mirror yesterday exclusively revealed Nicola was to become one half of Strictly’s first same-sex partnerships.
She explained: "I asked the show about it. They wanted to know if I wanted to be on the show and I said, 'Yeah, I'll do it, but I want to dance with another female.'
"It's really important, it's a big step for the show as well. It's nice to see that we're able to move on. I just can't wait to get some dancing done, really."
Paying tribute to show bosses for allowing her to break with convention, Nicola added: "I want to thank the BBC for supporting me and making me the first ever all female-pairing.
"And it's amazing to be a part of the movement for change, diversity and breaking boundaries in the entertainment industry."
She also feels the move sent an important message to youngsters who might be grappling with their sexuality.
Nicola said: "I think it's really important. 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'll be nice for the LGBT community to see there are same-sex couples on the show."
Strictly is due to start its shorter run on BBC1, with 12 celebrities, at the end of October.
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