Olympic golden girl Jessica Ennis is one of four Team GB heroes to be signed up as mentors on The X Factor.
Jess will appear alongside cycling greats Chris Hoy and Bradley Wiggins, as well as double gold athlete Mo Farah, in a special Olympic episode to be screened next month.
Each will be given a team of wannabes to motivate in the first live show of the new series, which kicked off in spectacular style last night.
Signing the medallists – in a deal rumoured to have cost nearly £1million – is a massive coup for Simon Cowell and ITV.
A show insider confirmed last night: “X Factor producers were literally jumping up and down with delight when they heard that all four Team GB stars had agreed to do the show.”
Our source explained: “The four of them are going to take a category each and spend the day giving contestants motivational advice.
“If these wannabes really want to achieve their dreams and win the X Factor then there are no better people to spend time with.”
Simon Cowell is said to have begun wooing the Olympians just hours after London 2012 came to a close.
“He thought the Games were one of the greatest shows on earth,” said our source.
“Simon and all the X Factor top brass agreed that they just had to get the Team GB heroes on the show. They reckon September’s live episode could be one of the most watched X Factors ever.”
ITV chiefs are delighted to have secured their own Olympic action after their ratings were knocked for six while the public lapped up the BBC’s coverage of the Games.
The insider said: “Simon Cowell wasn’t that bothered about the Olympics before it got started and he stayed out of the country for most of it, but he is a brilliant businessman and he knows an opportunity when he sees one.
“The Olympics were an absolute sensation, and Simon is determined to cash in on the goodwill and enthusiasm of the country. He can also see the irony of using the stars of what was ultimately a BBC event to help boost his own ratings.
“And if his mind wasn’t already made up, the moment he heard that Strictly was linked to some of the athletes he knew he had to act fast. In Mo, Bradley, Chris and Jess he has bagged arguably the cream of the crop from Team GB, and he is ecstatic they are going to be involved.”
Last night it was revealed that producers have already chosen tracks including Gold by Spandau Ballet, The Winner Takes It All by Abba and Tina Turner’s Simply The Best for the special show.
Mo, 29, and Jess, 26, were the faces of the Games from the start and they cemented their places in history when they bagged three golds, Mo in the 10,000m and 5,000m and Jessica in the heptathlon.
Chris, 36, and Bradley, 32, were already Olympic legends and they reinforced that status, again winning three golds between them, Chris in the team sprint and the keirin and Bradley in the road time trial.
The insider added: “The four champions will come up on stage and I’m sure the crowd’s reception will bring the house down. Then the contestants will perform routines with some kind of Olympic or sporting theme.
“Simon believes this will be an absolute triumph and could give him the best ratings the show has ever achieved.”