Ice skating icons Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean are set to receive a damehood and knighthood respectively in the King's New Year Honours, crowning five decades of service to figure skating.
The celebrated duo, who captured Olympic gold at the 1984 Winter Games in Sarajevo, retired from performing this summer after half a century on the ice.
Ms Torvill, now 68, and Mr Dean, 67, have previously been recognised with MBEs in 1981 and OBEs in 2000, with supporters campaigning for years to see these upgraded to the highest honours.
Their remarkable career has earned them millions of admirers worldwide, including members of the Royal Family, and the new honours acknowledge their extraordinary contribution to the sport.
Jayne Torvill and Christopher Dean are set to receive a damehood and a knighthood respectively in the Kings New Years Honour List
|GETTY
Their performance at the Sarajevo Games remains one of the most memorable moments in British sporting history, transforming the pair into global superstars in just four minutes and 28 seconds.
Skating to a specially arranged version of Maurice Ravel's Boléro, they achieved what no figure skaters had done before, receiving 12 perfect 6.0 scores from judges and becoming the highest-scoring competitors the sport had ever seen.
The routine captivated the nation, with more than 24million British viewers tuning in to witness their triumph.
Among those watching was Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace, who was said to have risen to her feet and applauded as the duo received their gold medals.
Following their victory, the Queen sent a congratulatory telegram signed Elizabeth R, described as a very rare honour.
"Many congratulations on your superb performance which I watched with great pleasure and which brought you such a well-deserved gold medal," the message read.
Princess Anne had made the journey to Sarajevo and celebrated the win with champagne in the stands.
The skating partners went on to perform for royalty on numerous occasions, including at the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations in 2012, the same year they helped carry the Olympic torch to London.
The duo captured Olympic gold at the 1984 Winter Games in Sarajevo
|GETTY
They also dined with the monarch in the early 1980s following their World Championship victory.
In 2013, the pair performed for Charles and Camilla at the Royal Variety Show.
Reflecting on their encounters with the late Queen, Mr Dean said: "It was quite a journey meeting the Queen on these occasions. She was a wonderful, wonderful woman and monarch."
He revealed he had received a letter from Her Majesty just days before her death, after writing to thank her for her service to the country.
"I was so touched. I didn't even expect to get a reply," he said.
The pair took to the ice earlier this year to celebrate their 50th anniversary
|GETTY
The pair came out of retirement in 2006 to serve as choreographers and judges on ITV's Dancing on Ice, which concluded earlier this year and won them a new generation of fans.
Friends since their schooldays, Torvill and Dean completed their farewell tour this year, finishing at Nottingham's Bolero Square with one final performance of their famous routine.
Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter