The 30 year-old agreed to appear on the this year’s series having never watched a single episode, even stating his fears for snakes, spiders and heights – all of which feature in the format abundantly.
Delving into the unknown in a bid to change the perception of him due to what can be noted as unfair reporting by the British tabloids, Khan has so far done a sterling job in presenting his true personality.
Failing the first ‘Bush-tucker Trial’, Khan has been helping the camp by doing his bit to secure stars ever since, managing to charm his fellow contestants into leaning on him when the going gets tougher.
Ridiculed initially for ‘shrieking like a girl’ and backing out of his initial test, Khan has taken a major role and is now seen as a solid part of the show’s success this season.
In 2004, the UK public fell in love with a sweet 17 year-old boy who stole their hearts at the Athens Olympics, although since then a string of seedy stories about Khan in the press have tainted his image.
Whatever his extra-curricular activities are, Khan hasn’t been judged fairly in the eyes of many, but gradually during the show, the former super-lightweight king is firmly turning things around.
Khan began as a rank outsider to win the celebrity jungle title, although is now at odds of 8-1 and has a lot more social media followers who previously only knew about his media portrayal.
Most in boxing know Khan is very likeable and open person who can possibly be a bit too trustworthy when it comes to letting people get close to him.
Marital problems haven’t helped his mental state, coupled with a damaging loss to Canelo in May 2016, a fight which Khan took due to his frustrations at being unable to land a fight with Floyd Mayweather or Manny Pacquiao.
Khan took the next best opponent he could find, but the weight difference proved too much – as expected – and the then-welterweight ended up firmly on his back in a bout contested at 155 pounds.
Pride was considerably dented, and once Khan is able to see through his image repair mission in front of the eyes of millions on TV, his career can be kickstarted to culminate in a huge couple of years to come.
Phil Jay is Editor of World Boxing News. Follow on Twitter @PhilDJay
