Ding ding, round two! Luke skates through

IT WAS the first time he had performed without being "punched in the face" – and he delivered a knockout routine on Dancing On Ice.

Olympic gold medalist Luke Campbell stepped out of the ring and skated through to week two on the ITV show last night.

His debut routine was described as a "good, solid performance" as he punched his fists, tackled a challenging lift and cut up the ice to the fitting soundtrack of Gold Forever.

Although the judges were harsh on the batamweight boxer, he received a good score of 18.5, putting him in third place, and Karen Barber said he "came out fighting".

She told Luke: "From day one, you have been as cool as a cucumber, no mention ever of nerves and you've got speed over the ice. You're learning all of the elements."

However, judge Jason Gardiner was not so nice. He gave him a poor score of 3.5 and said the gold medalist looked like a "little, weak, feeble boy" as boos from the audience rang out.

Afterwards, the Australian choreographer was kinder, saying Luke had potential and he wanted to see him improve as the competition continued.

Luke's performance was in jeopardy before the show after his professional skating partner Jenna Smith was struck down by a bug.

The American skater was believed to have "dragged herself" to training and was not on top form earlier in the week.

Luke has had to skate alone during Jenna's recovery but was boosted by his trainer during rehearsals.

Despite a few wobbles earlier in the week, Luke, 25, proved a good competitor on the ice and said he is not threatened by other couples on the show.

Although he was not expecting to have to do a tricky roll-up lift so soon in the competition, he managed it during the live routine in front of a television audience of millions.

"It is what it is, it's the first week. Hopefully, I'll be here again and improve on that," Luke told presenter Phillip Schofield.

Luke grinned as he talked about the perks since winning gold, including a free haircut and an upgrade on a train.

During rehearsals he said: "I don't like to lose – it's 100 per cent or nothing."

Presenter Christine Bleakley gave him her support and the judges gave their verdicts on his performance, saying: "This couldn't be further away from what he does for a day job, to give him his due."

Ex-Pussycat Dolls star Ashley Roberts said he had a "warm energy" and said Luke did a good job during his first week.

Professional skater Jayne Torvill was also pleased with his skating and praised his lifts and confidence on the ice.

Luke skated alongside a host of celebrities during the ITV show, including new pal Joe Pasquale, rugby player Gareth Thomas, The Only Way Is Essex star Lauren Goodger, TV presenter Anthea Turner and Baroness Oona King.

In the first episode, Baywatch bombshell Pamela Anderson made a shock exit after failing to win over viewers, despite being billed as the biggest star on the show.

Luke appealed to his 30,000 Twitter followers to vote for him on the night and they showed their support with lots of tweets.

Even Boy George seems to have a soft spot for the boxer, tweeting that his vote had "made all of the difference".

Luke's fiancée Lynsey Kraanen was sitting in the audience, cheering on Hull's Olympic hero.

She tweeted earlier on in the night: "Well, I didn't think I'd be nervous but my tummy has totally gone now. Come on Luke, show them your moves."

Luke thanked his fans for their help in getting him through to week two. He said: "I really appreciate all of your comments."

They will now have to wait until Sunday to see if Luke has staying power in the rink as well as the ring.