Davina McCall

You know, I experienced a lot of sexual abuse.

And that really chipped away at my confidence, at my soul, at my feeling of being safe and

And that really was the making of me as a kid.

I was very introverted.

I didn't like what I saw in the mirror.

I was constantly running away from social situations.

I didn't have a lot of friends.

And I think that those moments were really what defined why that made me who I was in that time.

But the thing that turned everything around for me was getting into the dance studio.

And I stepped into the dance studio because I loved the Olympics.

I loved the figure skating and the gymnastics and what these people could do with their bodies and the stories they could tell through movement.

And so I really wanted to try gymnastics, tried it.

loved it but my teachers were like why don't you try like jazz and tap and ballet and all these other styles so started trying them and i just fell in love immediately because it wasn't necessarily what i saw when i looked in the mirror it was what i could do with my body and the turns and the discipline the technique and the jetes and the jumps and all these things i was like wow this is really cool this makes me feel good about myself

And then I think the real turning point for me was entering a competition.

It was Junior Miss Dance of America.

I very much felt like the underdog.

We didn't have a lot of money.

Even the idea of being able to take these classes was way off the table when the teachers had approached me.

But they allowed me to assist classes, work the desk, clean the studio.

do all sorts, go door to door, knocking for donations so I could pay for costumes to do the competition team and sort of try and live this dream.