Jodie Ounsley plays Fury in Gladiators reboot Photo: BBC/Nick Eagle
As former British jiu-jitsu champion and Jodie Ounsley, Exeter Chiefs forward and the first deaf female rugby player to play for a senior England team, is used to stepping out of her comfort zone.
So when she was offered the chance to take part in a revival of the TV series Gladiators, the show , which pits ordinary people against superhuman athletes in grueling physical challenges, it was an opportunity the 22-year-old was never going to pass up.
Her MMA-mad father, Phil, was a contender for the show in the early 2000s, and while Ounsley was thrilled to continue the Gladiator line in her family, there was an even bigger reason for the temporary suspension. put on rugby boots.
“I really wanted to convey the idea that you can be strong, powerful, aggressive, but at the same time remain feminine,” she told Telegraph Sport. “I was very aware of this.”
So Ounsley left, trading the cap she wears on the field to keep her cochlear implant in place for a hard, sponge-coated helmet and stepping into the character “Fury,” named after her strength and passion. for the competition.
Ounsley (left) became the first deaf female player to play for a top English club. Credit : Shutterstock/Robbie Stevenson
In the original 1992 series, female gladiators wore revealing tops and trousers, but in the reboot of the series, which airs on the BBC on Saturday night, the women will wear sports bras and shorts to highlight their athletic and powerful physiques. /p>
“Other female gladiators may be really feminine from a different sporting background, but I really wanted to be myself and wear what I was comfortable in: a typical sports bra and shorts similar to what I wear in her rugby kit,” says Ounsley, whose appearance in the series reflects the growing commercial opportunities for today’s generation of professional female rugby players.
As someone who thrives on physical fitness, Ounsley enjoyed every second of the experience, filmed over six weeks. at the Utility Arena in Sheffield.
“The ordeal was brutal,” she says. “There were people from all different sporting backgrounds who were undergoing difficult physical tests. It was about finding the best individual who stood out, who was physically strong and powerful. All these elements came together and I was given an opportunity that was crazy and surreal.”
The former coal hauling champion has a legion of followers on TikTok
Ounsley comes from a fitness-obsessed family in Wakefield in West Yorkshire. – she followed her father to become a world champion coal hauler – has spent much of her rugby life fighting stereotypes about deafness, and now passes it on to her impressive legion of followers on TikTok.
In rugby, she relies on hand signals to understand the correct signals on the field, as well as reading lips, and when she arrived on set for filming last summer, she was completely overwhelmed.
Ounsley wears a cap while playing to keep his cochlear implant in place. Photo: Shutterstock/Ryan Crockett
“I was really shocked by how amazing the team was,” she says. “Many crew members and even the Gladiators underwent deaf training before filming. People were so willing to support me and it made the experience that much more memorable.”
As a combative forward with a disarming ability to break tackles, Ounsley came into her own in rugby as she embarked on a series of strength and obstacle course events. .
“The games were very physical and very similar to rugby,” Ounsley says. “One of the games was one-on-one scrimmages. I thought, “This is perfect.” This was one of my strongest games. I did well and many people commented on it.
“Our job was to break them up.”
“One of the new games is called the ring. It's a circle with a button in the middle, pitting two gladiators against two opponents. The opponents have to run to the middle and try to press that button, and The Gladiators' job was to push them back.
“It was honestly amazing. It wasn't rugby, it was actually smashing people with tackles. When I was in the arena, I just switched. It it was like playing rugby. I was in the zone.”
Ounsley as “Fury” enjoyed the opportunity to smash the competition… and chat with host Bradley Walsh. Credit: BBC
Halting her rugby career meant Ounsley missed the business end of last season, including the Premier 15 (now Premier League Women's Rugby) final, where the Chiefs lost to Gloucester-Hartpury.
But she still had the full blessing of her head coach, Susie Appleby, the former England runner-up in the BBC documentary SAS: Are You Tough Enough?
“I was so honest with her. I said, 'I appreciate that this is very important,'” Ounsley said, recalling a conversation with her head coach. “And she said, 'We'll fully support you.' You can come back to rugby, we know how hard you work at it.” Even now, she and the whole team are looking forward to it.”
Ounsley returned to Chiefs this season only to dislocate her shoulder in the Allianz Cup. However, the thought of inspiring other young girls to be fearless, muscular and proud of their differences in one of the country's most iconic television series helped her get through rehab.
“It opened people's eyes to this fact. that I was a gladiator and a rugby player and will hopefully open people's eyes to the fact that women and girls do play rugby,” she says. “This is such a special platform.”
It's only a matter of time before that gladiator wing tears him apart on the field again.
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