TEENAGER Lucy Boggis has shot to national fame as one of the new breed of gladiators, appearing in a new series of the cult show on Sky One.

Lucy, 19, lives in Lower Stanton St Quintin, near Chippenham, with her family. She competes in the heptathlon and has been training at Bath University. Her gladiator name is Tempest.

How would your best friend describe you?

Wacky, weird and very determined.

Where would you recommend for a great evening out in Wiltshire?

There is a really great Chinese restaurant in Chippenham called Exotic Oriental, which I love to go to.

They have an all you can eat deal on a Thursday so on birthdays or special occasions I go there to treat myself.

What do you do for fun?

I really enjoy going down to the beach to sunbathe and chill out. I usually go down to a beach at Croyde, which is in North Devon.

What motto or saying do you try to live your life by?

Train hard and win easy.

Who in the public eye do you most respect?

It would probably have to say Denise Lewis, the heptathlete. I know she has retired now but she was a real natural and an inspiration to me.

I got into the heptathlon when I saw her at the 2000 Olympics in Sydney because she had so many injuries in most of her events, like me, but she just carried on and she was awesome.

What is your biggest regret?

Probably not listening to my body, which in athletics means if you're in pain you should stop but in the past I've tried to carry on and it's caused me problems.

If I had listened to my body I may have needed just a month off instead of a year and a half.

What is your favourite television programme or film?

My favourite film has to be Superbad, which always makes me laugh out loud every time I see it.

My favourite TV show has to be Gladiators. I used to watch it before I was on the show and I loved it.

What makes you sad?

There are quite a few things but I would have to say injuries really get me down because that stops me from doing the one thing I love doing.

Another thing is when my boyfriend goes away for five months at a time to compete in a winter sport called skeleton bob, which is basically going down an ice track on a tray. His name is Anthony Sawyer and he's ranked about sixth in the world.

Describe your perfect day.

Travel down to the beach on a scorching hot day and making sure I get there really early. Spending all day on the beach and having a barbecue there afterwards. Then camping out with all my family and friends.