On FIRE!

As the live shows begin, Gladiators star MONTELL DOUGLAS talks sass, sequins and sportsmanship

- MICHAEL DARLING, HANNAH DAVIES

STRICTLY COME DANCING

LIVE SATURDAY, 7PM, BBC1 ENTERTAINMENT

Montell Douglas is 'beyond excited' to be tripping the light fantastic in this year's series of Strictly Come Dancing.

'It feels surreal, to be honest,' says the former Olympian, who won legions of fans as alter ego Fire in the recent reboot of sports game show Gladiators, as she joins TV Times for an exclusive interview. 'I keep thinking, "Is this really happening?"

It is indeed! And following last week's sparkling launch extravaganza, this Saturday is showtime as the BBC1 sequinned spectacular goes live and all 15 celebrities take to the floor to perform their first dance with their professional partner.

Here, Montell, 38, who made Team GB history as the first British woman to compete in different sports at both summer and winter Olympic Games, tells us about her dance journey so far...

You raced in the 100m at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, before swapping sprinting for bobsleigh at the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics. What skills as an athlete might stand you in good stead on Strictly?

My mindset, in terms of being able to train and attacking a new challenge, because it is a lot of hard work. It's a very similar transition to when I changed from athletics to bobsleigh. I'm going to have to tap into the skills I already have. So, for me, that's being able to pick up things fast and keep working at them.

Strictly is glitz and glam but physical, too, and hopefully I can bring a bit of Fire into the show!