Ore Oduba crowned winner of Strictly Come Dancing 2016
BBC presenter beats hot favourite Danny Mac to take the glitterball trophy
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Your support makes all the difference.Ore Oduba has been crowned the winner of this year's series of Strictly Come Dancing.
The sports broadcaster beat former Eternal singer Louise Redknapp and former Hollyoaks actor Danny Mac to take home the coveted glitterball trophy.
Oduba cried tears of joy as he thanked his partner Joanne Clifton for her work, before the pair were lifted into the air by cheering contestants and professionals.
The BBC presenter, who had no previous training and said he did not even dance at his own wedding, was rendered temporarily speechless as he was handed the trophy.
He thanked his dance partner, the production crew and judges before telling Clifton: “I love you with all of my heart. I'm so speechless. I just want to say thank you.”
The 30-year-old added: “This has been the most incredible experience of my life, I've learned to dance, I've made a best friend, I've been on the show that I loved for 12 years.”
His total score of 118 was enough to top the final leaderboard of the series, with rival couples both finishing on 116.
Oduba and Clifton collected 40 points for their show dance, which involved dancing on a giant drum kit.
Head judge Len Goodman praised the piece set to jazz hit "I Got Rhythm", telling the couple he “couldn't have asked for anything more”.
They also scored 40 for their jive to Bruno Mars's hit "Runaway Baby" from week four, which Craig Revel Horwood called “virtuosic”.
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Oduba and Clifton's first dance, an American smooth to "I'm Singin' In The Rain", was watched by Gene Kelly's widow Patricia Ward and scored 39 points.
Ward, who was married to Kelly from 1990 until his death in 1996, described the dance as a “beautiful tribute to Gene” when Oduba first performed it in week three.
Mac, the favourite ahead of Saturday night's final, got off to a mixed start as he was marked down during his first routine, scoring 36 for his quickstep from week four.
However, he matched Oduba's 40 with an interpretive show dance to Adele's "Set Fire To The Rain" and the pair's record-breaking samba to "Magalenha" by Sergio Mendes again scored 40 points.
Redknapp and Clifton collected 38 for their show dance to Whitney Houston hit "One Moment In Time", which told the story of the former Eternal singer's journey on Strictly and left judge Bruno Tonioli in tears.
They were also awarded 38 from the judges for their cha cha to "Flashdance ... What A Feeling", which Goodman called a “red hot cha cha from a red hot Redknapp”.
The pair collected 40 for their final dance - an Argentine tango to "Tanguera" by Sexteto Mayor.
The judges' scores were for guidance only during the show's final, with the winner being chosen by the public vote.
The live final saw the reunion of all contestants, bar Will Young who quit in the competition's early stages, for one final group performance. It also marked the last appearance of head judge Goodman who is stepping down after eleven years on the panel.
This series' main talking point was former Labour shadow chancellor Ed Balls who defied the odds to make it all the way to week ten with his dance partner Katya Jones (relive his "Gangnam Style" here).
The 2016 competition marks the show's most-watched series in its 12-year history. An average of 11.3 million viewers have tuned in to BBC One's flagship entertainment show on Saturday nights - the highest figure ever recorded.
Additional reporting by PA
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