Matty Lee has revealed he's hoping to 'escape from his diving partner Tom Daley's shadow' during the stint on I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here!
The Olympic champion, 23, who made history when he won gold in Tokyo over the summer, told MailOnline he's hoping to 'make a name for himself' in Gwrych Castle after gaining permission from his coaches to take part in the show.
Matty also revealed that his coaches have told him not to exercise during his stint on the ITV show so as not to lose muscle mass.
Open: Matty Lee has revealed he's hoping to 'escape from his diving partner Tom Daley's shadow' during the stint on I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here!
Asked if he's worried about losing weight while in camp, Matty said: 'I'm not worried. it's gonna happen, of course, I'm not going to be eating the same amount of calories.
'I've been instructed by my team what not to do. You think "oh we'll see him doing workouts in there" but actually my coach told me, if we don't get all the stars and we're eating rice and beans not to do any workouts, because then instead of burning calories I'll be burning muscle mass.
'Muscle is the hardest thing to bring back on. I will be a lot leaner when I come out and I'm aware of that. It's quite nice to be able to step away a little bit and enjoy something that's not diving.'
Speaking of when pal Tom learned he would be appearing on I'm A Celeb, Matty recalled : 'He was quite shocked, I just didn't expect me to be the one going in, and he eventually said to just be myself and just enjoy it as well, especially with these things you've got to enjoy it.
Iconic: The Olympic champion who made history when he won gold in Tokyo over the summer (pictured), told MailOnline he's hoping to 'make a name for himself' in Gwrych Castle
'It's nice to do something different, and also to get a name for myself as well and he's very much supportive on that and he's always tried to help me build my name instead of being ''Tom's diving partner,'' he's very supportive and I'm really grateful for that.
'I had the opportunity to do synchro with Tom which I never thought would happen, and then obviously our relationship flourished and we became best friends.
'It will be nice to build a name for myself, it's only fair me and Tom we're a partnership, without each other we wouldn't have been able to achieve what we did, it will be nice to be able to build a name for myself and not be in Tom's shadow.'
No stranger to showcasing his muscular physique in the pool, Matty hinted that viewers will see him strip down to his signature Speedos for some of the show's iconic shower scenes.
Weight: Asked if he's worried about losing weight while in camp, Matty said: 'I'm not worried. it's gonna happen, of course, I'm not going to be eating the same amount of calories'
He continued: 'I won't mind that, I'm probably used to doing that but in the same time they said ''oh you should bring your Speedos and you can make a naff shower scene,'' so I have brought them but I don't know whether to put them on or not.
'I don't want to be that guy because at the same time I don't shower in my trunks everyday.'
The athlete added that he'll be straight back to training when he leaves the castle after the series has ended, but is under no illusion he'll be several pounds lighter due to the show's staple diet of rice and beans.
Matty said he's been advised by his coaches to avoid any exercise if there's a lack of food in the castle, because of the fear he could start to burn his muscle mass.
Joining Mattie in the I'm A Celebrity castle is BBC Breakfast veteran Louise Minchin, who said she has the full backing of her former colleagues Dan Walker and Nugent.
She said: 'Obviously it's been a massive secret for I can't remember how long now, and I couldn't tell them but I did tell Dan and Sally in the last couple of days.
In some ways they were not at all surprised because they know I love challenges but they're all 100% behind me and looking forward to watching me on the show, hopefully not voting for me to do trials.'
Hunky: No stranger to showcasing his muscular physique, Matty hinted that viewers will see him strip down to his signature Speedos for some of the show's iconic shower scenes
Asked why she decided to take part in the show, Louise explained she'd been approached by ITV bosses in the past, and finally agreed after leaving Breakfast earlier this year.
She said: 'I've watched the show for years from my very own sofa and I always thought it was absolutely hilariously funny covered in bugs and I've always wanted to do it and try to do it.
'This year was a really good year with my leaving BBC Breakfast and I thought why not give it a go, it's one thing sitting on your sofa watching it's quite another doing it. I've been watching clips and thinking ''oh my god I must be mad.''
Matty and Louise will join eight other stars in Gwrych Castle for the new series of I'm A Celebrity this weekend, with stars once again facing a slew of gruesome trials to win stars.
Star: Joining Mattie in the I'm A Celebrity castle is BBC Breakfast veteran Louise Minchin, who recently said goodbye to the BBC Breakfast sofa after 20 years on the programme
First look images of the 2021 camp were revealed last week, ahead of the new series which kicks off later this month.
Ant and Dec are set to welcome 12 new faces into the grounds of the derelict Gwrych Castle, and aerial images show that the setting is bigger and better than before.
Drone shots of the set show that two huge black boxes have been built either side of the Grade I
