Fatima Whitbread: Who is the I’m a Celebrity South Africa finalist?
Star javelin thrower appeared on the 2011 series of the jungle-based competition show
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I’m a Celebrity superfans have had the unusual treat of two doses in a single year for 2023, as a batch of famous faces returned to camp for a special edition.
This All-Star version of the popular ITV show is set in South Africa and sees a group of celebrities from past seasons have another go at jungle life.
Contestants in I’m a Celebrity... South Africa included Happy Mondays singer Shaun Ryder, former supermodel Janice Dickinson and ex-royal butler Paul Burrell.
Retired athlete Fatima Whitbread is one of four finalists going into tonight’s final (Friday 12 May), having fashioned a new IAC legacy following her infamous run-in with a cockroach.
Here’s all you need to know about the star sportswoman.
Fatima Whitbread is known to many for throwing javelin for Great Britain at international tournaments. She achieved a bronze, and then a silver medal during her appearances at the Olympic Games in 1984 and 1988.
Whitbread’s gold medals came at the European and World Championships in 1986 and 1987, respectively.
After retiring in 1992, Whitbread married her long-term partner Andy Norman in 1997; they had one child together before their divorce in 2006, and his death the following year.
During Whitbread’s appearance on season 11 of I’m a Celebrity... Get Me Out of Here, she was praised for her fearlessness in tasks. One Bushtucker Trial resulted in a cockroach getting lodged in her nostril after it crawled in – one of the series’ most remembered moments.
“People still come up and chat about the cockroach,” admitted Whitbread ahead of the series.
“And every time I’m a Celebrity comes out, the cockroach incident gets aired quite a bit! Most children remember me for the cockroach and their parents remember me for throwing a javelin!”
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Looking back at her first time in the I’m a Celebrity camp, Whitbread recalled experiencing significant personal growth.
“I learnt a lot during my time in the camp,” she said. “As a mum, you forget about yourself and the camp made me realise I liked myself.”
Whitbread finished in third place, behind former The Only Way is Essex star Mark Wright and the eventual winner, McFly’s Dougie Poynter.
I’m a Celebrity... South Africa concludes on Friday 12 May at 9pm on ITV1 & ITVX.
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