Ian Thorpe reveals he was hunted by a gun-toting stalker

Ian Thorpe will reveal how he was hounded by dangerous stalkers his upcoming appearance on Channel 7’s This Is Your Life. 

Set to air Sunday, the special will delve into the swimmer’s frightening experiences with obsessed fans during the early days of his Olympic career.

‘I had stalkers, there was one with a gun,’ the 39-year-old tells the show’s host, Melissa Doyle, as reported in The Herald Sun on Saturday. 

‘I had to have security at my house. Things kind of changed and I was not ready for that and I don’t think anyone in their early twenties could be.’

Ian added that he was trained on how to safely avoid dangerous stalkers by the police. 

‘I had to learn from the police how to be able to drive a car to be able to get past a stalker or someone following me, legally,’ he says. 

‘I had stalkers, there was one with a gun,’ the 39-year-old said. ‘I had to have security at my house. Things kind of changed and I was not ready for that and I don’t think anyone in their early twenties could be’. Pictured in 2012

‘What I wanted to do was be able to train, be able to race and the other things that come along with it, I wasn’t prepared for that.’   

The wild, extraordinary and at times headline-grabbing life of the swimming superstar will receive the Big Red Book treatment as part of Seven’s ambitious re-boot of This Is Your Life.

World swim greats from past and present were flown in from around the globe to take part in the taping last month. 

Ian added that he had to be trained how to safely avoid dangerous stalkers by the police. ‘I had to learn from the police how to be able to drive a car to be able to get past a stalker or someone following me, legally’ he says. Thorpe is pictured winning gold in the 200m freestyle in Athens

Several other key figures from the retired legend’s past are also tipped to appear including childhood coach Tracey Menzies, relay gold medal winning teammate Michael Klim and long-time pool rival Pieter Van Den Hoogenband.

Grant Hackett, who long played second fiddle to Thorpe in the pool placing second behind him over the 200m and 400m distance freestyle events, is also expected to attend.

Thorpe’s performances in the pool are his most celebrated, fewer more so than his epic victory in the 400m freestyle final at the Sydney Olympics aged just 17.

‘What I wanted to do was be able to train, be able to race and the other things that come along with it, I wasn’t prepared for that,’ he added. An Olympic debutante in Sydney 2000, Thorpe would score instant worldwide fame

A year later he stunned the world again at the 2001 World Championships in Japan  when, at 18, he upset in-form Dutchman Pieter Van Den Hoogenband in the 200m freestyle with a blistering time of 1.44.06, lowering his own world record by 0.63s.

That world mark stood for six years before the next swim king Michael Phelps lowered it at the 2007 World Championships. 

Thorpe also earned acclaim for his anchor-leg prowess in relays, famously over-taking the US in the final strokes to win the 4x100m freestyle relay before a euphoric home crowd in Sydney 2000.

The wild, extraordinary and at times headline-grabbing life of the swimming superstar will receive the Big Red Book treatment as part of Seven’s ambitious re-boot of This Is Your Life. Four years after his Olympic debut, Thorpe returned for the Athens trials in Sydney

That victory became the stuff of Olympic legend for Australia after the Americans had earlier joked they would ‘smash’ Australia like guitars in the race.

Thorpe would suddenly retire in 2006 aged just 24, citing a lack of motivation for the sport.

However he made a high-profile comeback in 2011 but fell just short of qualifying for the London 2012 Olympics during the Australian trials.

Thorpe’s upcoming appearance on This Is Your Life is a coup for Seven, which announced in April it was bringing back the sentimental TV classic which first aired in 1975 with the late Mike Willesee as host.

Thorpe would suddenly retire in 2006 aged just 24, citing a lack of motivation for the sport. He is pictured with long-time friend and adversary Grant Hackett after winning gold and silver respectively in Athens 2000