Gladiators’ Steel reveals son is ‘defying the odds’ after being born premature

By Charlotte McLaughlin, PA Senior Entertainment Reporter

Gladiators star Steel has revealed that his son was born prematurely at 23 weeks and is “defying the odds”.

The CrossFit athlete, from Leicestershire, who won the title of the UK’s Fittest Man in 2020, joined the first series of the rebooted BBC show in 2024.

Steel, real name Zack George, wrote on Instagram: “Our precious boy Leo George.

A post shared by Zack George (@zackgeorge)

“You should still be tucked up inside mummy’s tummy but instead you entered the world on the 26th March 2025 at just 23 weeks weighing one pound eight ounces.

“You never truly know how quickly your life can be turned upside down but one thing we do know is that you are one hell of a strong boy and you are already defying the odds.

“Tiny, fragile and fighting.”

The post also contained photos of his partner Samantha George in a hospital bed with the baby on her chest, and medical staff around her.

Steel earned his name through his “unbreakable strength”, ranking number 26 out of 126,461 on the global CrossFit leaderboard.

He has a daughter Ivy with Samantha as well.

She wrote on Instagram in January that Ivy is “very excited to have a new friend very soon” while sharing pictures of their pregnancy scan.