By
Louise Eccles
Jessica Ennis became the poster girl of the Olympics and her toned body earned her a legion of male admirers
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I cover up my arms because I look butch: Olympic gold medallist Jessica Ennis worries her muscles make her appear masculine
- Gold medallist admitted she avoided weight training because she thought big muscles were 'unattractive'
- In her autobiography, she confessed to having body hang ups
- Despite concerns, she posed in lacy, black underwear for a photo shoot
- Admitted irritation at nickname, Tadpole, created by rival Kelly Sotherton
But the gold-medal winning heptathlete reveals she worries that her muscles make her look masculine.
In
fact, she thinks her arms look ‘butch’ and, away from the track, often
covers them up. Last night was no exception as she chose a sheer cream
blouse with long sleeves for her appearance at a Christmas concert.
Covering up: Jessica wore a long sleeved top for
a book signing in Sheffield last night after admitting that she worries
her muscles make her look masculine
Miss Ennis, 26, a picture of
understated glamour, joined boy band The Wanted and X factor
semi-finalist Misha B for a charity concert to celebrate the Christmas
lights switch-on at Meadowhall, in her home city of Sheffield.
She
has kept a low profile since winning gold for the heptathlon in
spectacular style in August, but made a rare public appearance to attend
the charity concert and sign copies of her autobiography, Unbelievable:
From My Childhood Dreams to Winning Olympic Gold.
In
it, she admits she has body hang-ups like many other women. She says:
‘I don’t look in the mirror and think, Oh God yeah. I don’t think I’m
anything special.’
She
admits she avoided weight training when she began competing because ‘I
felt big muscles were unattractive and none of my friends at school had
them’.
‘As a teenage girl I
was more self-conscious,’ she said. ‘I would not wear certain things
and, to some extent, I am the same now and will usually cover my arms. I
look at myself in the mirror and think I am a bit butch, but you get to
a point where you finally understand that looks do not matter so much.’
Despite her concerns, she has posed for a number of risqué photo shoots, including one in lacy black underwear.
Poster girl: Olympic gold medallist Jessica Ennis admits she has body hang ups like many other woman
Miss Ennis also admitted her
irritation at her nickname, Tadpole, which was created by fellow English
heptathlete and rival, Kelly Sotherton. At 5ft 5ins tall, Miss Ennis is
often dwarfed by other competitors and she admits that the nickname
fuelled her insecurities about her size.
During
the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, she recalls Miss Sotherton
returning to the athletes’ village after talking to the media and
boasting: ‘Guess what. It’s so funny. I’ve just called you Tadpole to
the press.’
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