At a time when a lot of us were backpacking around the world, pulling beers at dingy London pubs, or furiously thumbing our way through Lonely Planet travel guides, five-time Olympic gold medallist Ian Thorpe was slogging it out — hard.
The Thorpedo was breaking records in the pool, representing his country in international sporting competitions — just casually being, you know, an Aussie Sporting Icon.
So when Network Ten came calling to chat about the possibility of participating in its long-running reality series The Amazing Race, Thorpe jumped at the chance — quietly excited that he'd finally get the backpacking travel experience he'd always longed for.
"He was my first choice — don't tell my family," Thorpe says with a chuckle. "My sister was like, 'Why didn't you pick me?' But I was like 'ummm' . . . I know my sister!
"(Christian and I) are both competitive — Christian is a PT (personal trainer), so he is still super fit, and we are both really determined."
Details of the new celebrity season of The Amazing Race are being kept under wraps, but what we do know is that the competitors include Natalie Bassingthwaighte and her sister Melinda Sheldrick, Matildas teammates Chloe Logarzo and Emily Gielnik, Pete Helliar and his wife Bridget, and comedian Luke McGregor and his mum Julie. They'll begin their travels in Buenos Aires, before crisscrossing the globe through South Africa, Namibia and Thailand.
The race will be overseen once more by its globe-trotting host, Top Gear Australia's Beau Ryan, who will be on hand to offer moral support as the competitors face — and we're quoting here — "some of the toughest challenges of their lives, while deciphering clues and tackling every Roadblock, Detour and U-turn thrown their way".
Thorpe admits there were moments during the competition, which sees participants race to complete challenges and be first to cross the finish line for a chance to win $100,000, when he wondered what on earth he was doing — especially as the race wore on and conditions got more challenging.
Reference: Visit website
No comments:
Post a Comment