Bolton Gladiators contestant was inspired by late father

Betti Worth is the owner of ‘The Farm’ gym in Wigan, where she works as a fitness trainer.

The 32-year-old won against competitor Tuathlaith to move forward in the programme, overcoming a 13.5-second time penalty.

The Westhoughton native, who now lives in Horwich, said appearing on the programme was ‘surreal’ and that she now dreams of becoming a gladiator.

Previously having lived and played college soccer in America before moving to Australia, Betti returned to the UK after her father fell ill, having to move to Bolton Hospice.

Betti credited her father, Ian, for reinvigorating her fitness journey, telling The Bolton News: “My dad died in 2017. Before I did the eliminator I said ‘thank you very much to my friends and family, especially my dad.

“Always be with your friends and family, because they’ll believe in you the most.”

Betti with her mother, Susan (left) and late father, Ian (right) (Image: Betti Worth)

She added: “He was actually in Bolton Hospice, so if I can say thanks to them. That’s how I got in to all my fitness, as I moved back to the country when that was happening and I got very fit after it.

“I was a footballer, I played at Chorley Women when I got back from Australia, and that’s what got me back into my fitness and then I started Crossfit, that’s what focussed me into getting on to Gladiators; I had to focus on something when I lost my dad, and it was fitness that I focused on.”

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Betti said her ex-boss had sent her a text with the application details for the programme, which she initially dismissed as a joke.

However, after she forwarded it on to her mum, she was convinced.

Betti said: “She just said ‘no, he’s being serious, you need to apply’. It was a couple of minutes to midnight and I’d been doing my application for a while, and I thought ‘oh, I’ll not do it’, and I did it.

“I just pressed send, and I got a call!”

Betti told The Bolton News how she was able to overcome a 13.5-second delayed start to win , which is currently streaming on BBC iPlayer.

Left to right: George, Sue, Rosie, Nathan , Dotty and Betti (Image: Betti Worth)

Hosted by Bradley Walsh and his son Barney, Betti said the duo were ‘down to earth’ and ‘really modest’.

Betti said: “I just had to block everything out. I just couldn’t get distracted and I just had to believe that if I was focused all my training would just get me there.

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“I do loads of visual work so I had a visualisation, I was just waiting, visualising that I was going to get through the paper at the end, winning.

“I just stayed focused, and I just want to get the word around: never give up, and no matter what, even if you feel like you’re behind in life you’ve just got to stay focused and run your own race.

“Unfortunately Tuathlaith did slip and it was awful, but I actually didn’t really realise at the time. I saw her do it at the corner of my eye but you don’t even think about it, you’ve just got to stay focused and run your own race.”

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Betti added that she did not know the exact speed of the travelator that wiped out her rival, but said: “It feels fast – you’ve just got to make sure that you get that landing, you just keep powering through and powering your legs.

“I think I was making grunting noises as I was going up! You’ve just got to keep running until you get to the end.”

Despite all of the challenges, Betti revealed that the toughest part of the episode was how kind everyone was.

Betti thanked her friends and family (Image: Betti Worth)

She added: “We’re all friends, and it’s just hard because, at the end of the day, you’re all trying your best. Everyone wants to win the games and it’s hard, because obviously we can’t all win.

“It was hard mentally – the games were just difficult and, as an athlete, they say it’s really hard physically and they do tell you that, but I can’t explain actually how physically and mentally demanding the whole experience was.

“I’d do it again tomorrow, I’d do it again today but it’s one of the hardest things I’ve ever done in my life.”

If you have a story, I cover the whole borough of Bolton. Please get in touch at jack.fifield@newsquest.co.uk or click to send me a message on WhatsApp or on Signal on 07517566383.