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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Entertainment
Jamie Roberts

Shannon Courtenay 'hated' herself before Celeb SAS and now targets I'm A Celebrity stint

Shannon Courtenay has set her sights on an I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here appearance in the future after insisting no show can be as hard as Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins.

The professional boxer, 29, wants to follow in the footsteps of this year's contestants, including fellow sports star Jill Scott, and take on the Bushtucker trials in the Australian jungle.

Speaking to the Mirror about potentially appearing on the hit ITV series, she said: "I feel like now I could do any show and not worry because, I think, once you've done SAS I don't think you'll find any others hard."

Despite her confidence, she did admit she's "not very good" with a number of the obstacles I'm A Celeb throws at you, including snakes, rats, cockroaches and enclosed spaces.

Shannon Courtenay faced her demons on Celebrity SAS Who Dares Wins (Shannon Courtenay/Instagram)

However, she is adamant she would be able to pass the trials with flying colours after the "brutal" SAS experience improved to strengthen her mental resilience.

Speaking about how the Channel 4 programme helped her mindset, the former WBA bantamweight world champion confessed she used to hate herself before she took part in the show.

She candidly revealed she went into the series with a number of personal issues she needed to tackle, saying: "I had so many demons in my head that I needed to kind of overcome and I thought if anything was going to make me vulnerable and actually face things I've been putting off for years it was SAS.

Shannon thinks she'd be a success on I'm A Celeb (Shannon Courtenay/Instagram)
She revealed she's in a much better place since Celeb SAS (Shannon Courtenay/Instagram)

"Before the show, I actually hated myself as a person. I couldn't look in the mirror. I would wear these massive sunglasses all the time to hide my face, so I just didn't like who I was. I hated the way I looked."

She continued: "I was struggling with life in general before I went on the show."

But the fighter nicknamed The Baby Faced Assassin insists she is now liking herself again after being stripped back and seeing herself in a different perspective. "It [SAS] allowed me to kind of come to terms with myself," she said.

She has set her sights on regaining her boxing world title (Getty Images)

"You know, a few weeks of no social media, no makeup, no hair. It was stripped back and just allowed you to see see the world again. It was nice."

She added: "Now, I'm in the best place I've ever been. I'm mentally so happy now, which I wasn't before."

As well as a potential stint on I'm A Celeb, Shannon has set her sights firmly on regaining her world title and unifying her boxing weight division and thinks her gruelling experience on SAS has given her the mental strength to succeed.

Shannon believes her team has seen a big difference in her since Celeb SAS (Getty Images)

"I feel like my mindset has definitely changed," she continued. "I've got a greater understanding of myself and I'm not so insecure like I used to be. I've allowed myself to open up a little bit more and I'm in a good place.

"They always say a happy fighter is a dangerous fighter. My team has seen a better side of me which has allowed me to progress and improve."

Do you have a story to sell? Get in touch with us at webcelebs@mirror.co.uk or call us direct at 0207 29 33033.

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