A former Strictly pro has branded the dance-a-thon challenge a fix, complaining that it has ‘messed with the leaderboard’. 

On Saturday, the remaining celebrity contestants were thrust into ‘Samba-thon’ which saw all seven couples dancing simultaneously to impress the judges.

JB and Lauren were picked by the judges as the winner of the dance-a-thon, leaving them tied at the top of the leaderboard with Tasha and Aljaz. 

At the other end of the scale were Pete and Jowita with just 32 out of a possible 48, leaving them bottom of the table for the second week running.

Ola Jordan, 42, has since spoken out against the chaotic dance-a-thon, claiming it is a fix.

‘I’m not a fan of the dance-a-thon. I always used to call it fix-a-thon,’ the former Strictly pro told Mecca Bingo.

Former Strictly pro, Ola Jordan , 42, has spoken out against the chaotic dance-a-thon, claiming it is a ‘fix’

On Saturday’s episode, celebs competed in a dance-a-thon with pairs performing a samba routine simultaneously

‘I’m not a fan of the dance-a-thon. I always used to call it fix-a-thon,’ the former Strictly pro told Mecca Bingo 

She continued: ‘You prepare this one dance for the whole week and then suddenly you do this silly thing in the middle of the floor.

‘Let’s face it, they are celebrities that just come on the show. They’ve got no clue what they’re doing, so for me, it messes with the leaderboard. 

‘The leaderboard is important. It’s not who you vote for, which is important, but it’s combined with the leaderboard. If someone drops even one place down, that will affect them going in the bottom two. 

‘The judges can do what they want to do really because we can’t really see on a screen who is the best and who’s the worst.’

Ola also defended Chris McCausland, 47, after fans branded the Samba-thon ‘discriminatory, unfair and in poor taste’ towards him.

Viewers thought the blind comedian was at an unfair disadvantage because he has no concept of spatial awareness, despite judges actively encouraging the celebs ‘move around’ the floor.

Chris and his professional dance partner Dianne were the first couple to be sent off of the ballroom floor.

Going off the dancefloor first meant Chris and Dianne were only awarded one point, placing them second to bottom of the judges’ scoreboard.

Furious Strictly fans branded the Samba-thon ‘discriminatory, unfair and in poor taste’ towards blind comedian Chris McCausland

Viewers thought Chris was at an unfair disadvantage because he has no concept of spatial awareness, despite judges actively encouraging the celebs ‘move around’ the floor

Ola said: ‘It’s easy to say that he’s not the best in a compeтιтion, and everyone knows that. He had some great steps in the routine; he had proper Pasodoble steps. His posture wasn’t the best.

‘It was a great effort though because we have to still remember that he can’t see any of the dances. 

‘Like they said before, if he looks at Pasodoble from other people, he can’t see what he’s supposed to be performing the next week so he’s got no idea. 

‘With dancing, you learn on vision as well. You look at something and you go “Oh, that’s how it’s supposed to look like”, so it’s very hard for him.’

After fans spoke out on his behalf, Chris took to Instagram to reflect on his performance.

He wrote: ‘I was really proud of our dance on Saturday, and as for the Sambathon….[zipped-mouth emoji] ….Well thank you so much for all of your votes. 

‘You really did help us survive double Latin! See you tomorrow partner [Dianne Buswell], I’ll be bringing earplugs.’

Strictly Come Dancing airs on ITV and ITVX. 

Strictly Come Dancing leaderboard: Week Nine 

1. Tasha Ghouri and Aljaz Skorjanec – 40 out of 40, Sambathon: 6. Total: 46

2. JB Gill and Lauren Oakley – 39 out of 40, Sambathon: 7. Total: 46

3. Montell Douglas and Johannes Radebe – 37 out of 40, Sambathon 5. Total 42

4. Sarah Hadland and Vito Coppola – 36 out of 40, Sambathon 4. Total: 40

5. Chris McCausland and Dianne Buswell – 33 out of 40, Sambathon 1. Total: 34

6. Jamie Borthwick and Michelle Tsiakkas – 32 out of 40, Sambathon 2. Total: 34

7. Pete Wicks and Jowita Przystal – 29 out of 40, Sambathon 3. Total: 32