Dancing On Ice star ‘dating NFL star after sliding into DMs’ – and they’ve already been on a romantic holiday
A DANCING On Ice star is ‘dating an NFL star’ after sliding into his DMs - and they’ve already been on a romantic holiday.
Colin Grafton is riding high as one of the Dancing On Ice pro skaters.
The star is said to have been inspired to skate after watching the 1998 winter Olympics.
Since then he has competed all over the world in prestigious sporting events - and has made a name for himself on Dancing On Ice.
And it appears the star has found a special someone too, away from the rink.
Colin is rumoured to be dating former NFL star Michael Sam, after they connected via social media.
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A source said: “Colin has been single for a while now and wanted to remain single but he found something different about Michael.
“They met in September last year after Michael slid into Colin's DMs.
“They’re enjoying time together and Michael whisked Colin off on a whirlwind romance trip to Barcelona and they’ve been on lavish days. He even rented him a fancy boat for his birthday.”
And it looks like things are heating up yet again between the pair, with Michael planning to visit Colin in Japan for work.
Colin looked content in his photos from the trip to Barcelona.
The star was seen posing in a white shirt and beige trousers while sipping Champagne on board the yacht.
His rumoured new beau, Michael Sam, made history after he became the first openly gay player to be drafted into the NFL.
He started his college career at Missouri having attended the school from 2009 to 2013.
During that time, the 35-year-old played for the Missouri Tigers and competed in the Big 12 conference.
Dancing On Ice winners
DANCING On Ice has seen some impressive moves - and equally impressive falls.
The ITV show has run for 16 seasons, with a break from 2014-2018.
Here's the rundown of all the winners including a skating pro who bagged an impressive hat-trick:
Season 1, 2006: Gaynor Faye & Dan Whiston
Season 2, 2007: Kyran Bracken & Melanie Lambert
Season 3, 2008: Suzanne Shaw & Matt Evers
Season 4, 2009: Ray Quinn & Maria Filippov
Season 5, 2010: Hayley Tamaddon & Dan Whiston
Season 6, 2011: Sam Attwater & Brianne Delcourt
Season 7, 2012: Matthew Wolfenden & Nina Ulanova
Season 8, 2013: Beth Tweddle & Dan Whiston
Season 9, 2014 (All Stars): Ray Quinn & Maria Filippov
Season 10, 2018: Jake Quickenden & Vanessa Bauer
Season 11, 2019: James Jordan & Alexandra Schauman
Season 12, 2020: Joe Swash & Alex Murphy
Season 13, 2021: Sonny Jay & Angela Egan
Season 14, 2022: Regan Gascoigne & Karina Manta
Season 15, 2023: Nile Wilson & Olivia Smart
Season 16, 2024: Ryan Thomas and Amani Fancy
During his college career, Sam accumulated 123 tackles, including 36 for loss, 21 sacks, six forced fumbles and two intercepted passes.
Sam came out ahead of the 2014 NFL draft after his first senior season at Missouri.
In doing so he became the first publically gay player to be drafted into the NFL.
Before the draft, he had indicated that he wanted to make his sexuality public and therefore decided to reveal the news in interviews he did with the New York Times and ESPN.
Sam told NFL.com at the time: "I am an openly, proud gay man.
"I understand how big this is. It's a big deal. No one has done this before. And it's kind of a nervous process.
“But I know what I want to be, I want to be a football player in the NFL."
In a statement at the time President Barack Obama said that he "congratulates Michael Sam, the Rams and the NFL for taking an important step forward today in our Nation's journey".
Meanwhile, Colin made his Dancing On Ice debut back in 2023.
His first partner was drag queen star The Vivienne.
For the 2024 series Colin is partnered up with Claire Sweeney for the latest series.
The skater previously revealed how he gets nervous while performing live on Dancing on Ice, but he gets lost in the adrenaline of the performance.
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Speaking to the Express, he said "We all get nervous, if you're not nervous at all, it's very rare. But I think nervousness is a good thing because that adrenaline keeps you going.
"It's a weird feeling because you are performing in a studio for a live audience, you kind of just get wrapped up in that moment of the crowd cheering for you."
