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Aussie Olympian Shayna Jack is getting honest about her ‘doping scandal’ on I’m a Celeb

She's ready to set the record straight.
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Although many fans may have expected RayGun to appear on this season of I’m a Celeb…Get Me Out of Here! The premiere episode revealed the Aussie athlete competing would be none other than Shayna Jack.

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The 26-year-old swimmer, Olympic Gold Medalist and three-time world record holder is trading the pool for the wild, joining a number of Aussie athletes, comedians and reality TV stars in the South African jungle. But, her journey over the past five years has been nothing easy, and she’s ready to set the record straight on tonight’s episode.

Shayna Jack
(Credit: Ten)

What happened with Shayna Jack?

In 2019, Shayna Jack, then 20, faced controversy in a highly public ‘doping scandal.’ The swimmer returned a positive test for the banned substance Ligandrol and was handed a four-year ban. Following an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport it was reduced to two years.

The unintentional use of the anabolic agent and the resulting court case put her under intense emotional and financial strain as she spent $180,000 trying to prove her innocence.

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NANTERRE, FRANCE - AUGUST 04: Shayna Jack of Team Australia prepares to compete in the Women's 50m Freestyle Final on day nine of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Paris La Defense Arena on August 04, 2024 in Nanterre, France.
(Credit: Getty)

In a teaser trailer for the second episode of I’m a Celeb, Shayna is seen breaking down in tears as she explains to her campmates that at her lowest moments during the period, her partner was afraid to leave her at home alone for fear she might hurt herself.

“Some nights I was in a bad place. He said those nights were the most fearful. He said he’d speed home because he just didn’t know if he was going to walk home into something that he wasn’t able to cope with. [If] I’d done something that I would eternally regret,” she said.

If you or someone you know has been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, help is always available. Call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or visit their website.

She also explained in the show’s to-camera confessional booth why she felt it was important to be upfront with her campmates about her backstory.

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“It’s using the people around me to continue to open up about it and face those difficulties and stop giving it so much power,” she said of the scandal. “I feel like the more I take it off my chest and take it off my heart, the more I can try to move forward with my life and not feel this huge aspect of my life pulling me back.”

Shayna Jack and fiancé Joel
(Credit: Instagram)

Who is Shayna Jack engaged to?

Shayna is currently engaged to Australian Kookaburras hockey player Joel Rintala, who popped the question following her gold medal journey at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

She later told The Courier-Mail that her beau convinced her to see the famous Trevi Fountain in Rome, asking her to marry him after she tossed a coin into the water and made a wish.

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The Aussie sporting couple have been together since 2016, and Shayna has been vocal about the support she received from Joel throughout her 24-month ban.

“There were probably points where I thought I didn’t want to be an Olympian anymore when I nearly gave up on that dream and I’m really glad I didn’t,” she told reporters after qualifying for the Olympics.

“My family, friends and partner are really proud of me no matter what happened tonight and moving forward.

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