![\"Lize](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/lize-van-der-walt.png\")
<\/p>\nLize van der Walt, the former Gladiators competitor who performed under the name Gold during the 1990s television series, has passed away following a battle with cancer. She was 60 years old.<\/p>\n
The South African-born athlete died on Sunday, April 19, with the announcement made today via the programme’s official social media channels.<\/p>\n
A statement from the Gladiators page read: “We’re deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Gladiators’ golden girl, Gold.”<\/p>\n
Van der Walt had been living with a cancer diagnosis since 2013.<\/p>\n
She was selected from thousands of hopefuls to join the popular ITV show’s roster of competitors, making her first appearance during the sixth series in 1997.<\/p>\n
Before her television career, van der Walt had already established herself as an accomplished athlete. Born in South Africa and raised in Switzerland, she demonstrated exceptional talent on the track.<\/p>\n
At just 21, she claimed a gold medal in the 400m event in 1987, also competing in relay disciplines.<\/p>\n
Her adventurous spirit extended beyond athletics. Van der Walt scaled Table Mountain in her native Cape Town, showcasing the physical prowess that would later define her television appearances.<\/p>\n
Lize van der Walt was best known as Gold in the 1990s Gladiators series<\/p>\n
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During the 1990s, she made the move to Britain, where she began working as a personal trainer. <\/p>\n
It was this career path that would ultimately lead her towards the opportunity that brought her national recognition on Gladiators.<\/p>\n
While employed as a fitness instructor in the UK, van der Walt’s colleagues noticed her athletic abilities and encouraged her to respond to a casting call seeking new Gladiators performers.<\/p>\n
Her application proved successful, with van der Walt beating out thousands of other candidates for a place on the programme.<\/p>\n
The newcomer entered the arena to the sounds of Spandau Ballet’s hit single “Gold”, a fitting choice given her stage name.<\/p>\n
Over the course of her time on the show, she featured in nine episodes. However, a persistent injury curtailed her appearances, preventing her from competing as frequently as she might have wished.<\/p>\n
Despite these setbacks, the tribute from the show noted that she “quickly made her mark” during her tenure.<\/p>\n
Following her departure from Gladiators, van der Walt returned to her homeland of South Africa. <\/p>\n
There, she forged a new path as a visual artist, building a successful creative career far removed from the television spotlight.<\/p>\n
She also pursued training as a psychosocial coach, adding another dimension to her professional life.<\/p>\n
The tribute statement praised her determination throughout her time on the programme, stating: “She showed incredible resilience and when she did compete, she proved that all that glistens truly was Gold.”<\/p>\n
The announcement also highlighted her sporting achievements prior to television fame, noting: “Originally from South Africa, Lize was a talented athlete long before Gladiators, excelling in the 400m and relay.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Lize van der Walt, the former Gladiators competitor who performed under the name Gold during the 1990s television…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":403414,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[1705,458,727,146,85,46],"class_list":{"0":"post-403413","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-celebrities","8":"tag-bbc","9":"tag-celebrities","10":"tag-celebrity","11":"tag-entertainment","12":"tag-il","13":"tag-israel"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=403413"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/403413\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/403414"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=403413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=403413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=403413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}