BROKEN BONES & BIG TRAUMA JAZZ'S NEW CHAPTER

The Dancing With The Stars champion has her eyes on another prize

Catching up with two-time Celebrity Treasure Island competitor Lance Savali before competing in the reality show seemed like a good idea. But for Jazz Thornton, the plan didn’t work out well.

“He broke my hand!” exclaims the mental health advocate and 2021 Young New Zealander of the Year, 28. “Obviously, not on purpose. We were doing a TikTok dance together. He spun his leg and he’s so high and I’m so short, so his foot just smacked my hand and broke it.”

Jazz, who is asthmatic, also got COVID the week before the show started, so she wasn’t in peak physical condition, but she didn’t let it take the shine off being part of a show she’s loved since childhood.

“I grew up watching Celebrity Treasure Island and Survivor, and the concept of it is thrilling. More thrilling to watch than do, but I was super-excited to be in it.

“I spent so much money buying the right-coloured clothes for my team! It was completely out of my comfort zone, but I had the time of my life.”

The author and podcaster, who boasts more than two million TikTok followers, already had some reality TV experience after winning last year’s series of Dancing With The Stars, but being a ballroom champion didn’t really help.