Is Dame Kelly Holmes a born survivor?
My biggest fears are water and jumping into the water. I had both in the first 30 minutes. It was terrifying!
Dame Kelly Holmes is one of the celebrities taking part in the new ITV series Bear Grylls: Mission Survive which premieres tonight at 9pm. Eight celebrities face a 12 day survival mission unlike anything they've ever experienced before.
To stay alive they must learn to navigate difficult terrain, build shelter, make fire and eat food that nature provides in the rainforest of Costa Rica. But first athletics legend Kelly must overcome her biggest fear - water.
Kelly, who jumped from a helicopter into a swamp, said: 'I didn't learn to swim properly until I was 18 and I went into the military and I had to.'
Kelly also revealed she feared for her life after getting dragged under the water during another part of the show.
She continued: 'I was really in a bad situation where I had to be helped out, it was really frightening, I was dragged under the water but thankfully there was a safety team. I've done a lot of things but I really had to face my fears - and to the extreme - to get over it.'