Oksana Platero

One of six newcomers to join the Strictly family in 2016, Oksana Platero is fast, focused and fun, but with just enough edge to keep Judge Rinder firmly in place!

Born in Ukraine, it didn’t take long for the young Oksana to realise her love of dance, having her first ballroom lessons at the age of six. The floodgates were opened, and dance took over her life, earning her the title of National Youth Champion on three consecutive occasions.

At 18, Oksana moved to the US to further her dance career, and that move paid off – she became National US Champion and went on to appear on five series of Dancing With The Stars, as well as undertaking choreography work on So You Think You Can Dance.

Oksana also goes by her maiden name of Dmytrenko. Her husband Jonathan, a fellow Dancing With The Stars pro, is her professional partner, and together they’ve performed and choreographed on projects including the Japanese production Love On The Floor, Dancing With The Movies, and the cruise show Dancing With The Stars at Sea.

Good to know Oksana’s earned her sea legs – there could well be stormy times ahead trying to get Judge Rinder ship-shape!