Olympian Beth Tweddle sues The Jump after suffering fractured vertebrae during show

Olympic bronze medal-winning gymnast Beth Tweddle is taking legal action against the makers of Channel 4's 'The Jump' after fracturing her vertebrae on the reality TV show in 2016.

The 33-year-old  had to undergo surgery on her neck and spinal cord after she crashed into a barrier following a training jump during the third series of the winter sports show.

Demetrius Danas, an injury lawyer at Irwin Mitchell, who is representing Tweddle, said the defendants involved in making The Jump have to date denied liability for the injuries.

He said: “She has had to put many parts of her life and career on hold and, while Beth is making a good recovery, she still cannot do many of the things she previously could as an elite athlete and may never fully recover.

“Despite attempts to settle the legal case amicably, the defendants involved in making The Jump have so far denied any liability for her injuries and we have been left with no choice but to issue court proceedings as we seek to resolve the case.”

The decision to sue comes after the retired artistic gymnast announced she was four months pregnant with her first child in December.

In June, shortly after she married finance director Andy Allen in a ceremony in Cheshire,  the athlete revealed she had only just began to recover from the horrific injury, which left her unable to walk or dress for months.

Tweddle was the first female gymnast from Great Britain to win a medal at the European Championships, World Championships and Olympic Games.

She retired in August 2013 and starred in ITV's 'Dancing on Ice' before taking part in The Jump.

The reality show, which first aired in 2014 with twelve contestants, saw celebrities take on challenges like speed skating and ski-jumping.

But over the course of the four series, 34 contestants, including actress Tina Hobley and Strictly Come Dancing star Ola Jordan, sustained injuries.

During the same series that Tweddle was injured in, Girls Aloud star Sarah Harding was also forced to pull out due to a ruptured ligament in her knee.

Tweddle said in a statement regarding the incident: “It's been a long journey and my recovery is still ongoing. I'm not sure I'll ever be 100% again.

“The effects of my accident still interrupt my daily life, and, aside from the severe physical injuries at the start, the hardest part of the recovery process has been the psychological element, dealing with and processing the whole accident and the aftermath of what happened.”

“It's disappointing that we have had to seek court proceedings as we had hoped the makers of the programme might be willing to work with us to settle the case.

“But I just want to make sure that there is full accountability for people involved in creating shows like this and to help prevent others having to go through what I have for the past three years,” she added.

In December 2018, Channel 4 confirmed via Twitter that the show had been axed and would not be returning.

A spokesperson for the production company which had been involved in the development of the show, TwoFour said: “This matter is being dealt with by our insurers and we are unable to comment as the claim is ongoing.”