Greg Rutherford has shared the somber visual proof of his daughter’s severe injury. The 39-year-old Olympian and 2016 Strictly Come Dancing star shares two sons and a daughter with his partner, Susie Verrill.
Only a day prior, the long jump star had shared that their five-year-old daughter, Daphne, had been battling chickenpox for a month. He praised the “little trooper,” who had also unfortunately contracted conjunctivitis and impetigo during that time. Referring to it as a “very scary period,” Greg Rutherford was relieved when Daphne could finally return to school—but his relief was short-lived before he received a nightmare phone call.
On Sunday night, Greg Rutherford posted a series of images on Instagram showing Daphne in the hospital after breaking her arm. He captioned the post:
“Poor Daph 😭 it’s only been a minute since she went back to school after chicken pox (and only a day since me posting about it) and while me and @susiejverrill were in Southampton, we had a call to say she’d had an accident at a park and it looked like she’d broken her arm. And indeed she has 😳 broken radius and ulna.”
He continued, adding, “Thanks so much to staff at Milton Keynes hospital for being incredible… she was so scared but they really put her at ease and she was made up with her matching broken arm-ed teddy.”
Now that their daughter is back home, Greg confirmed she is already “working out she can still do loads of stuff with just one arm.”
The photos he posted showed her small arm bent out of position before being wrapped in a cast and placed in a sling, with Daphne’s brother clearly enjoying the opportunity to draw on her bandages. Despite the injury, the young girl maintained a cheerful expression while posing beside her father in her pajamas, holding a large, fluffy puppy.
Friends and fans quickly sent their support. Former Strictly professional Nadiya Bychkova commented, “Sending lots of love ❤️,” while dancer Janette Manrara wrote, “Poor little thing. Hopefully she heals smoothly and quickly 🤍.”
It is safe to say that 2026 has been a traumatic year for Greg and his family. Just this past April, his seven-year-old son, Rex, was rushed to the hospital with appendicitis. At the time, Greg noted, “He was so brave start to finish and now back at home requesting all the food.”