Fans left teary-eyed over Pasha Kovalev's tribute to his Strictly co-stars

He took to the stage with Cheryl Tweedy

Author: Emma DoddsPublished 17th Feb 2019
Last updated 17th Feb 2019

Dancer Pasha Kovalev took to the stage with his Strictly Come Dancing co-stars for the last time on Saturday night (16th Feb), taking part in a routine with both the professionals on the show as well as The Greatest Dancer judges Cheryl Tweedy, Matthew Morrison and Oti Mabuse - who's also a dancer on Strictly.

The explosive three-minute routine saw many different forms of dance - including a Latin section in which Cheryl took centre-stage and danced with Pasha as well as Graziano di Prima, Gorka Marquez and Johannes Radebe.

After the performance, presenter Jordan Banjo chatted to a few of the dancers and congratulated them on such an amazing routine, eventually coming to Pasha, who recently announced that last year's series of Strictly had been his last.

He gushed over his Strictly co-stars, and there wasn't a dry eye in the house when he said, "As you might know 2018 was my last year in Strictly, but I'm so excited to share this beautiful stage with my Strictly family one more time."

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Fans left teary-eyed over Pasha Kovalev's tribute to his Strictly co-stars
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Taking to Twitter, many fans expressed their sadness that Pasha would no longer be taking part in Strictly. One wrote, 'I’m actually so glad that the greatest dancer spoke about pasha so much and made it a special moment where he was in centre stage!'

Another added, 'Pasha dancing with Cheryl on - the greatest dancer - little mention by Pasha about his last season on Strictly 😭💃💃.'

Pasha announced his exit from Strictly last Wednesday, with an emotional statement on Twitter which read, 'After scoring 93 perfect tens, reaching 4 finals and lifting 1 Glitterball, it's time for me to find a new challenge and so I've decided to make last year my final season on Strictly.'

He continued, 'I've had eight fantastic years full of wonderful memories, thanks to the incredible partners, professionals and myriad of behind the scenes teams who all work to make Strictly the amazing production that it is.

'The biggest thanks goes to all the members of the public who've supported me so much over these years - I look forward to seeing you on the Strictly Pro-Tour this spring, and for many future adventures to come!'

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