Sam Thompson battles on in torrential rain as injured and emotional star is joined by Chris Hughes on day two of gruelling 260-mile endurance challenge
Sam Thompson looked visibly emotional as he was met with horrendous weather conditions on day two of his gruelling Soccer Aid Challenge.
The beloved TV and radio star, 34, was joined by former Love Island star and good pal Chris Hughes, 32, for support on Tuesday.
Sam has been given the task to travel a mammoth 260-mile journey on both bike and foot to deliver the match ball to its new home in Old Trafford, with the hope of raising much-needed funds for Unicef.
To complete the challenge, the I'm A Celeb star is expected to run a marathon for five days and cycle in between, ensuring the ball arrives on June 6, just in time for kickoff on Sunday, June 15.
And in new images, Sam, who is suffering from a calf injury, looked downcast as he was soaked head-to-toe by the heavy rain.
From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop.
The star decided to cycle the remaining miles of his Tuesday challenge after revealing he 'popped his calf' and was strapped into a medical table just the day before.
Sam was seen red-faced from the wet weather and appeared to sigh as he wiped away the water from his face.
In an attempt to boost morale, Chris joined his pal on the bike as Sam continued on with his challenge.
Later on, the pair beamed for a snap together inside a building as Sam rested on a massage bed with some lunch.
Following their meeting, Chris went to his Instagram stories to share clips of their cycle together.
Gushing over his pal, he penned: 'Keep donating towards Sam's challenge, it's seriously inspiring and he needs every boost he can get. I saw the emotion drain from him earlier, he battles on and is doing so well.'
Earlier in the day, Chris smirked when he was grilled about his relationship with JoJo Siwa, 22, live on This Morning.
The former Love Island star appeared on the daily ITV show from Towcester where he was covering Sam's Soccer Aid challenge.
During the segment, host Ben Shephard asked Chris a cheeky question about him and JoJo.
'Can we just say, because obviously we're all talking about it. Congratulations on the relationship, we're all very excited, have we decided whether it's Hughes-wa... what's the power couple name?' Ben asked.
Co-host Cat eagerly added: 'What is it going to be?'
'They call it Co-Jo, that's the one they're all going for,' Chris replied.
The two presenters gushed that they liked the name and Chris commented it 'rolls off the tongue'.
JoJo and Chris have sparked frenzied speculation about their relationship status over the past few weeks since they met in the Celebrity Big Brother house back in April.
Their relationship has grown from platonic to romantic and the Dance Moms star confirmed that she and Chris have made their relationship official, and she's started calling him her boyfriend in an interview with Capital Radio.
On Sunday, Chris sent fans into a frenzy when he shared a steam bedroom snap with JoJo on Snapchat.
Sharing the sweet image of himself and JoJo cuddled in bed together, he captioned the image: 'Sleeping beauty.'
While in an interview with The Guardian, JoJo gushed about her blossoming romance with Chris, when asked whether things between them were still platonic.
She said: 'It's not platonic anymore, and it's been a beautiful development, a beautiful connection, and I'm absolutely head over heels for him and he's the same way.'
The Dance Moms star also hit back at speculation that their relationship is a 'PR stunt,' saying: 'Clearly, you've never been around us. I won't ever speak for him, but for me personally, the happiness in my life just radiates off of me right now.
'Literally yesterday, I was massaging my cheeks; I've never [before] been in pain from smiling so much.'
JoJo also appeared on Sunday's edition on Sunday Brunch, and fought back tears as she emotionally shared how Chris has been embraced by her family since he first flew to the US to surprise her for her 22nd birthday last month.
She said: 'She loves him, she does love him. My parents think the absolute world of him, and him and my Dad are like best friends, Chris was actually telling me this yesterday, they went to the spa together yesterday.
'They're literally best friends, Mom Siwa she absolutely adores him. I love watching her watch us, because I've never seen my mom so happy, and it's... it's... I could cry.
'Honestly, it makes me happy to have everybody act as... it feels like we're a family, it feels like he's been in my family for how ever many years it feels like forever.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
20 minutes ago
- BBC News
'We need to back him now and hope he delivers'
We asked for your views on Russell Martin's appointment as Rangers head are some of your comments: Harris: I'm happy that we finally got a manager but I was hoping for Why appoint the man that threw Southampton into shambles?Jeff: Well hopefully he is not one dimensional. 3-5-2 seems to be a good formation when playing Pretty underwhelming appointment, however, I hope the fans get behind him and give him a chance to prove Time will tell, we need to back him now and hope he delivers. Read comparisons to big Ange Postecoglou this week, if true it could make him the right This is a brilliant appointment. A studious coach that has the ability to man manage and also coach technically very well without overly complicating the game. He earns the respect of his players and I feel he will bring our great club the success we have yearned for these past few years.
Daily Mail
25 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
The core traits of INCELS: Scientists identify 12 key characteristics in disturbed, women-hating men
A new study has shed light on incels - and exactly why some men are more likely to become women-hating recluses. Researchers from Swansea University and the University of Texas at Austin surveyed 561 incels from the UK and the US. And their results revealed 12 key characteristics shared by this group. The surprising results show that the most important common factors are not right-wing ideology or ethnicity, but extremely poor mental health and a history of bullying. Incels, or involuntary celibates, are a group of men who believe they are unable to have sex or form relationships and are often extremely hostile to women as a result. Shows like Netflix 's Adolescence paint a picture of the stereotypical incel as y oung, white, right-wing, chronically online, and violent. However, this research suggests that incel ideology is attracting a far wider section of society than previously thought. Co-author Dr Joe Whittaker, a criminologist from Swansea University, says: 'While drama can be a useful tool for facilitating public debate, it is also important to have rigorous academic research to back it up.' Although the survey found that incels had a 'broad range of characteristics', some factors were more common. Dr Andrew Thomas, a psychologist at Swansea University, says: 'If we had to point to their most consistent characteristics, it would be incredibly poor mental health and their feelings of bitterness, frustration, and disdain towards women—though even these show variation within the sample.' The most important factor was that incels typically suffered from exceptionally poor mental health. More than a third of incels suffer from moderate depression or anxiety while 37 per cent said they had 'daily suicidal thoughts'. Co-author William Costello, a researcher in psychology from the University of Texas at Austin, says: 'Incels are typically framed in terms of the threat they pose to others, but our findings suggest they may be just as dangerous, if not more so, to themselves.' However, this finding may also be concerning given that incel ideology has already been the inspiration for several mass shootings and murders. Studies have shown that over 70 per cent of all mass shooters were suicidal before or intended to die during their killing sprees. Incels' high rates of poor mental health came alongside high rates of loneliness and a history of bullying. Out of those surveyed, 86 per cent of incels reported having experienced bullying compared to just a third of the general population. Likewise, when asked to assess their loneliness, 48 per cent of incels selected the highest possible option. This could be a product of the fact that almost half of all incels live with their parents or grandparents while a further quarter live alone. In that isolation, the researchers point out that incel forums may become someone's only source of social contact or companionship Another extremely common factor is incels' extremely high rates of autism and neurodivergence. During the study, the researchers gave incels the 'Autism Spectrum Quotient-10' test, a screening tool used to see whether someone should be referred for a formal autism assessment. A third of all participants would have been referred for clinical assessment, compared to just one per cent of the general population. In terms of ideology, incels beliefs were often varied but centred on a few key principles. Just like in Adolescence, the majority of incels agreed with the so-called 80/20 principle - the belief that 80 per cent of women are attracted to 20 per cent of men. This principle is the cornerstone of incel 'black pill' ideology which states that incels should give up on relationships because they can never improve their dating prospects. Likewise, incels are unified in their belief that 'feminists', followed by 'the political left', 'wider society', and 'women', were the biggest threats to their community. However, incels are not all members of the far right as they are often made out to be. In fact, incels typically viewed themselves as 'centre-left' and shared left-wing views on issues such as homosexuality, corporate profits, and social benefits. In another break with the stereotype, incels are also a far more diverse group than many people believe. Only 58 per cent of incels taking the online survey said they were white while the remaining 42 per cent were from a variety of ethnicities. Likewise, incels were mainly middle-class but reported coming from all socioeconomic backgrounds and the majority were either employed or in full-time education. Dr Thomas says: 'Incels are often stereotyped in the media as young, white, right-wing men who are not in employment, education, or training. 'When we tested the accuracy of these stereotypes using primary data collection, we discovered misconceptions.' However, one of the study's most important findings was the identification of which two sub-groups of incels were more likely to develop harmful attitudes which could lead to violence. The first group are incels with psychological vulnerabilities such as autism spectrum disorder or a history of bullying and abuse who may be drawn to 'black pill' ideology by feelings of rejection. The second were those on the 'dispositional extremism trajectory' whose innate characteristics disposed them to misogynistic violence. These incels had high rates of narcissism, psychopathy, and Machiavellianism as well as right-wing political views which lead to a greater risk of violence. The researchers hope these distinctions will help de-radicalisation and counter-extremism efforts target the right people with the right interventions. What is an Incel? 'Incel' stands for 'involuntary celibate' and is a term used by a certain group of men who blame their inability to form relationships and have sex on women. Incel groups have been accused of inciting violence and misogyny online and numerous communities and subreddits have been banned over their content. A cryptic Facebook message posted by Toronto suspect Alek Minassian just before the incident suggested he was part of an online community angry over their inability to form relationships with the opposite sex. The now-deleted post saluted Elliot Rodger, a community college student who killed six people and wounded 13 in shooting and stabbing attacks near the University of California, Santa Barbara, in 2014. Calling Rodger 'the Supreme Gentleman', the Facebook post declared: 'The Incel Rebellion has already begun! We will overthrow all the Chads and Stacys!' Chads and Stacys are names used in internet forums to denote people with more active sexual lives. The reference to the term 'incel', meaning involuntarily celibate, was a term used by Rodger in online posts raging at women for rejecting him romantically. The anti-women sentiment also recalled Canada's 1989 massacre at the Ecole Polytechnique, an engineering college in Montreal, when 25-year-old Marc Lepine entered a classroom. He then separated the men from the women, told the men to leave and opened fire, killing 14 women before killing himself.
The Sun
26 minutes ago
- The Sun
Inside Christine McGuinness' fall-out with Chelcee Grimes after the footballer branded her ‘fake' in feud
CHRISTINE McGuinness was branded "fake" by ex-pal Chelcee Grimes after the pair fell out following their close friendship. It's been revealed how Christine, 37, got "incredible close" to footballer Chelcee, 33, before splitting from husband Paddy, 51, in 2022. 5 5 Despite their once tight bond, the two women are thought to have "little to no contact" these days. They suddenly unfollowed each other on social media in 2023. And last year Chelcee teased a new romance on Instagram before liking a damning comment about Christine. It read "Christine is fake as they come, Chelcee deserved so much better. "Christine can keep trying to get attention and fake a new romance." The former pals met while taking part in ITV's The Games in 2022 - months before Christine and Paddy announced their shock split. Last year Christine revealed she is currently celibate - but Chelcee, who also previously abstained from sex, blasted her for "copying" her. Writing on Instagram she said of Christine: "Honestly just gotta laugh at this point. Copies everything I do." Christine recently opened up about having relationships with both men and women. Speaking on the How To Fail podcast, Christine said: "It shouldn't matter somebody's gender. Christine McGuinness struts in barely there bikini after quitting Celebs Go Dating "It never mattered to me, which was why once me and my ex-husband were separated and I met people, I didn't properly date. 'It was more like blurred the lines of friendships for me, that was normal. "It felt comfortable because I'd done that as a teenager and I, as a teenager, I dated both men and women." Last month Christine, who shares twins Leo and Penelope, eight, and 11-year-old Felicity with Paddy, made the decision to quit Celebs Go Dating after flying to Ibiza for filming. 5 5
