NEWLY RETIRED OLYMPIC cycling champion Bradley Wiggins will swap the velodrome for the ski jump ramp in British television show The Jump, the programme makers announced on Tuesday.
Wiggins, 36, follows in the footsteps of fellow British sporting greats Steve Redgrave (rowing), Beth Tweddle (gymnastics) and Rebecca Adlington (swimming), all of whom pulled out of the show through injury.
But the five-time Olympic champion, who became Britain’s first Tour de France champion in 2012, is a seasoned skier and says he is looking forward to the challenge of learning how to ski jump.
“Skiing is a big passion of mine. It was a mix of that and the other committed names this year that made me want to sign up,” Wiggins said in a press release.
“Major retiring Olympians such as Sir Steve Redgrave have also trod this path. I see this as a sporting challenge and want to go out there and win it. Just don’t call me a celebrity.”
Other participants in the programme include former England footballer Robbie Fowler, ex-England rugby captain Jason Robinson and Olympic gymnast Louis Smith.
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