HEARTBREAKING NEWS: Strictly’s Ellie Goldstein Makes IMPORTANT Doctor’s ANNOUNCEMENT In Heartbreaking Health Battle – Will She Have The Courage To Continue Playing?

One of this year’s Strictly Come Dancing stars has defied doctors’ odds, as she was previously predicted to live a heartbreaking lifestyle. Essex model Ellie Goldstein was born with Down’s syndrome and medical professionals thought that she may never be able to walk or talk – but now the 23-year-old star has proven them wrong as she is donning her dancing shoes for the much-anticipated BBC ballroom competition.

According to her mum, Yvonne, Ellie has been defying expectations since the day she was born. She heartbreakingly admitted to the BBC: “When Ellie was born, we were shocked to learn she had Down’s syndrome. The doctors said she would never walk or talk and a nurse suggested we might want to leave her at the hospital.” The youngster also had issues with her heart and, at just five months old, Ellie had a 10-hour operation to close holes in her heart. She spent 10 days in intensive care and another week in the high dependency unit.

Yvonne explained that she finally had her baby girl home again after just three weeks and Ellie continued to go from strength to strength.

The mum said: “Despite what the doctors said, she could walk by 18 months, was speaking by her third birthday and was able to read by the time she started school. Ellie stayed in mainstream education until it came to doing her exams and we moved her to a specialist school.”

Ellie added: “I am proving people wrong and I am a role model for people like me. Doctors said I wouldn’t talk but now I never stop talking! You should always believe in yourself.”

The star gained global attention after being the first model with Down’s Syndrome to appear in a Gucci campaign in 2020. When she was 18, Gucci Beauty and Vogue Italia scouted her during the Photo Vogue Festival as part of their digital editorial on Unconventional Beauty.

She was also named one of Fabulous Magazine’s Women of the Year 2021 for making the fashion industry more inclusive. Then, in April 2023, Ellie teamed up with Mattel to unveil the first Barbie doll with Down’s syndrome as part of the inclusive Fashionistas line.

Ellie has also gone on to release two books – an autobiography named Against All Odds and a children’s book about inclusivity and growing up with Down’s syndrome.