Gladiator Harry Aikines-Aryeetey aka Nitro reveals becoming a father inspired him to give up his 'selfish' sporting career and why his daughter, 5, seems destined to follow in his showbiz footsteps

Gladiator star Harry Aikines-Aryeetey has revealed that becoming a father changed his outlook on life by forcing him to make sacrifices in life. The athlete, who goes by Nitro on the BBC show, began his career as a sprinter, representing the UK at the Commonwealth Games and the Olympics. Yet in 2023, Harry transitioned from a career in athletics to the world of TV, which allows him to spend more time at home with his wife Lauren and their five-year-old daughter, Aubreé-Isla. Speaking to the Daily Mail about how life has changed since becoming a father, Harry - who has partnered with HomeServe for a new campaign - said: 'My daughter is my whole entire world. 'I selfishly did a lot of things for myself as a sprinter, as an Olympic athlete. You compromise and sacrifice on a lot of things around life. But the moment you have a child...'I was sad when she was born because I was like, she won't know me as a sprinter and having won x amount of medals. But that was so selfish of me. 'Actually I've been given an even greater gift with her seeing me do Gladiators and Strictly and MasterChef because all of these things have taught her different things about life.' Gladiator star Harry Aikines-Aryeetey aka Nitro has revealed that becoming a father changed his outlook on life by forcing him to make sacrifices in life In 2023, Harry transitioned from a career in athletics to the world of TV, which allows him to spend more time at home with his wife Lauren and their five-year-old daughter, Aubreé-IslaOffering up an example, Harry shared: 'I can't even get a chopping board out without her being next to me after MasterChef. She cooks with me all the time.' Revealing that Aubreé-Isla has also inherited his showbiz flair, Harry continued: 'The same with Strictly, it made her dance. I've had to put her in Stagecoach [performing arts school] because you know she's loving all those things!'And Gladiators is teaching her to be the best version of herself and to be confident to be proud.'She's watched me on telly since she was born. So for her it's actually just normal. When she makes friends she's like, "Hi, you want to meet Nitro?"'She really appreciates the the role that I play and me and my wife we definitely support her in a way that allows us to try and have an essence of normality within the house.'While Aubreé-Isla seems to have inherited Harry's love of performing, the gold medallist revealed he also knew he was destined for a different life since his school days. 'Throughout life, everyone's always said I've been destined to do something,' Harry mused. 'Even at school, I've always been sporty, but within that, people have always said I was going to do other things. 'And whatever that was, it was to entertain people. It was to bring an essence of positivity to people. I just like vibing with people. I want to make it a happy environment. I want to be happy myself. 'From 14, I had aspirations of being at the Olympics representing the country. I was the fastest 14-year-old of all time in Europe. 'So, at the time, I was heavily set on running fast. But within that, I I didn't realize I was building this character called Nitro as well. I go by the name Nitro because I'm a form of energy!' The athlete began his career as a sprinter, representing the UK at the Commonwealth Games and the Olympics (pictured at the European Athletics Indoor Championship in 2013) As well as proving himself in the athletic world, Harry demonstrated a flair for dancing when he appeared on Strictly last year. With rumours that there could soon be an All Stars series that sees past contestants return, Harry said he would 'jump at the opportunity'. 'You don't realise how special it is,' Harry mused. 'But equally, it depends what standard they want because if they want it to be good, then they're going to be looking at your Layton Williams' [not me].' As for the controversial show shakeup - which has seen Emma Willis, Josh Widdicombe and Johannes Radebe replace longstanding hosts Tess Daly and Claudia Winkleman - Harry has no concerns. He explained: 'Strictly as a brand in itself, I just can't see it ever doing much wrong. 'They are going with the times and they're doing what they need to do.I'm excited to watch it. I'm a fan of the show.'Yet for now, Harry is focused on filming the new season of Gladiators. It's been all change for the show, with Cyclone, Bionic, Giant and Athena all dropped from the lineup. It's been said four new stars are set to join the cast. While Harry can't comment on the current series he expressed his excitement at the upcoming celebrity specials, revealing I'm A Celeb champion AngryGinge and boxer Anthony Joshua would be his dream opponents. Harry is also being kept busy after being appointed the nation’s first ‘Personal Drainer’, on a mission to help Brits keep their drains fighting fit and avoid costly blockages. Harry is also being kept busy after being appointed the nation’s first ‘Personal Drainer’, on a mission to help Brits keep their drains fighting fit and avoid costly blockages Speaking about his collaboration with home emergency and cover provider, HomeServe, Harry said: ' You've heard of a personal trainer, but now you have a personal drainer!' Speaking about his collaboration with home emergency and cover provider, HomeServe, Harry said: 'You've heard of a personal trainer, but now you have a personal drainer here to help you monitor and look after your drains! 'It's quite a expensive business when something goes wrong with your drains, so it's more about prevention, educating the nation in regards to being able to look after your pipes with home before things go wrong. 'Most people chuck things down the drain not realizing what should go down it and what shouldn't go down it.'When things do go wrong, that odor that you might get coming out of your drains, then someone walks into your house and you see their face go. 'A lot of us suffer from house embarrassment!'To find out more information visit homeserve.co.uk/personal-drainer