Clara Amfo and Aljaz Skorjanec left Strictly
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Strictly Come Dancing viewers blame Clara Amfo and Aljaz Skorjanec exit on ‘flat shoes’

Did Clara's footwear hold back her footwork?

Strictly Come Dancing stars Clara Amfo and Aljaz Skorjanec were let down by her ‘flat shoes’, according to some fans.

Radio 1 DJ Clara and her pro partner departed the Strictly dance floor last night (Sunday, November 29).

They lost out to Jamie Laing and Karen Clifton – although Clara and Aljaz were bottom of the leaderboard.

Clara and Aljaz picked up just 18 points for their Jive to Tina Turner’s River Deep, Mountain High on Saturday.

Clara and Aljaz vs Karen and Jamie
Strictly star Clara and partner Aljaz found themselves in the bottom two (Credit: Strictly Come Dancing YouTube)

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And even though judge Craig Revel Horwood passionately urged the pairing to sparkle – and voted to save them – it was not enough.

“Consider Saturday night as your warm up, darling,” Craig encouraged Clara after it was confirmed she and Aljaz were up for the chop.

She looked flat-footed and lost her steps part way through.

“Forget that, go out there and do it spectacularly,” the judge enthused.

“I know you are totally capable. I love your dancing.

Strictly Craig
Craig Revel Horwood gave Clara a lot of encouragement (Credit: Strictly Come Dancing YouTube)

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“This dance suits your body, suits your temperament, suits everything. I just want you to do it brilliantly.

“So please go out there, enjoy it and dance it like you’ve never danced it before.”

Strictly Come Dancing star Clara Amfo admits to mistakes

Just moments earlier, Clara admitted to host Tess Daly there had been a few problems with the Saturday night performance.

She said: “There were a few mistakes so hopefully I can prove why I want to carry on and have fun here.”

However, her reprise showing failed to win over judges Shirley Ballas and Motsi Mabuse.

And some viewers reckon it might have been her footwear holding her and her footsteps back.

“Not Clara’s best dance, she looked flat-footed and lost her steps part way through,” observed one fan on social media during Saturday’s showing.

“Such a shame.”

Karen and Jamie were in the bottom two duos
Some fans believe flat shoes mean Karen and Jamie will dance another week (Credit: Strictly Come Dancing YouTube)

Someone else agreed during Clara’s Sunday repeat attempt: “This doesn’t seem much better. Is it Clara’s flat shoes? #Strictly.”

And a third social media user concluded: “Clara’s jive was marginally better but still clumpy and flat-footed in places (flat shoes didn’t help).

“Jamie’s tango was about the same – he deserved to win the judges’ saving vote. (Craig must have been watching a different dance off).”

Thanking her supporters on Instagram last night, Clara hinted she takes criticism to heart.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Clara Amfo 💛 (@claraamfo)

She wrote: “Critique is part of the show’s process and those words do stick.

“I believe it’s normal to have self doubt and nerves in a pressurised situation.

“For me, the tricky thing is when those words come back and whisper in your ear at the wrong moment!

“Learning to compartmentalise those feelings so that they don’t cancel out my full capability is something I’m gonna continue to work on.⁣”

Strictly Come Dancing continues on BBC One, Saturday December 5, from 7.25pm. 

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Robert Leigh
Freelance writer