Ola Jordan facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ola Jordan
Jordan on Dancing with the Stars: Taniec z gwiazdami in 2019
Born	Aleksandra Grabowska (1982-09-30) 30 September 1982 (age 42) Nasielsk, Poland
Occupation	Professional dancer
Known for	Strictly Come Dancing (2006-15) Dancing with the Stars. Taniec z gwiazdami (2018-19)
Height	1.62 m (5 ft 4 in)
Spouse(s)	James Jordan ​ (m. 2003)​
Children	1
Parents	Dariusz Grabowski (father) Janina Grabowska (mother)

Ola Jordan (born Aleksandra Grabowska on September 30, 1982) is a professional ballroom dancer from Poland and Britain. She is especially good at Latin American dancing. Ola was a professional dancer on the British TV show Strictly Come Dancing from 2006 to 2015. She even won the show in 2009!

Before joining Strictly, Ola won a big dance competition in her home country, Poland. After that, she moved to England and started dancing with James Jordan. They got married on October 12, 2003, and live near Maidstone in Kent, England. In 2018, Ola became a judge on the Polish version of Dancing with the Stars: Taniec z gwiazdami.

Ola's Dancing Journey

Ola Grabowska started dancing when she was just ten years old. Her school had a dance club, and she decided to join. Before she danced with James Jordan, she had another dance partner named Przemek 'John' Lowicki in Poland.

In 1999, when she was seventeen, Ola won Poland's Open Championships. The next year, she placed 12th in the World Championships.

Dancing with James Jordan

Ola and James Jordan first danced together in a competition called the Dutch Open in November 2000. They became professional dancers in 2003, the same year they got married.

For four years, they stopped competing to teach Latin American dancing in Hong Kong. But they missed competing and became professional dancers again in 2005. In May 2006, they came in second place at the Blackpool Professional Rising Stars Latin event. Later that year, in November, they placed third in the British Championships for Professional Latin.

Ola and James first appeared on the BBC One TV show Strictly Come Dancing in 2006.

Strictly Come Dancing Highlights

Ola Jordan first joined Strictly Come Dancing in 2006 for its fourth series. Her first partner was DJ Spoony. They were voted off in the third week.

In the fifth series, Ola danced with Scottish rugby player Kenny Logan. Her husband, James, danced with Kenny's wife, TV presenter Gabby Logan. This was the first time two married couples competed against each other on the show! Kenny and Ola were eliminated in the ninth week.

In 2008, for series six, Ola's partner was TV presenter Andrew Castle. They left the competition in week seven.

Winning the Glitter Ball

In 2009, Ola partnered with BBC television sports reporter Chris J. Hollins. They danced their way to the final and won the competition! They beat Ricky Whittle and Natalie Lowe to become the 2009 champions, taking home the famous Strictly Come Dancing glitter ball trophy. Viewers and the show often called them 'Team Cola', which was a mix of 'Chris' and 'Ola'.

Later Seasons on Strictly

Ola continued to dance on Strictly Come Dancing for several more years.

• In 2010, she partnered with magician Paul Daniels. They were the second couple to be voted off.
• For a special Children in Need show in 2010, Ola danced with Harry Judd from the band McFly. They won this special competition!
• In 2011, she danced with former Welsh footballer Robbie Savage. They were voted off in week nine.
• In 2012, Ola's partner was EastEnders actor Sid Owen. They were eliminated during Halloween week.
• For the 2013 series, Ola competed with former Hollyoaks actor and singer Ashley Taylor Dawson. They made it to week 11.
• In 2014, Ola partnered with wildlife expert and presenter Steve Backshall, known from the children's show Deadly 60. They were eliminated in week nine.
• In 2015, Ola's last partner on Strictly was sports commentator and Olympic medalist Iwan Thomas. They were the first couple to leave the competition that year.

Soon after their elimination, Ola announced that this would be her last series of Strictly Come Dancing. She made her final appearance in a group dance during the Series 13 Final.

Other TV Shows

Ola and James Jordan have appeared on other television programs too.

• In 2009, they were on a celebrity version of Total Wipeout.
• In 2010, Ola and Strictly Come Dancing head judge Len Goodman were a team on the BBC show Bargain Hunt to help the Children in Need charity.
• Ola and James were also judges on Dancing on Wheels in 2010.
• In 2013, they won the show All Star Mr & Mrs.
• They appeared on an episode of Through the Keyhole in September 2015, showing off their home.

In December 2014, Ola was going to compete in the Channel 4 series The Jump. This show has celebrities compete in winter sports like ski jumping and bobsleigh. However, Ola had an accident during training and hurt her knee. This injury meant she had to leave The Jump and couldn't dance in the Strictly Come Dancing Series 12 finale. She needed surgery for her knee.

In November 2016, Ola took part in I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here!. She was the third celebrity to be voted out of the jungle.

In February 2018, a Polish TV company announced that Ola would become a judge on Dancing with the Stars: Taniec z gwiazdami, which is the Polish version of Strictly Come Dancing.

In 2019, she appeared on the fourth series of Celebrity Coach Trip with her husband, James.

See also

In Spanish: Ola Jordan para niños