Celebrity Bear Hunt star forced to quit Netflix series after suffering major injury

A contestant was forced to bow out of Netflix's Celebrity Bear Hunt mere days into the gruelling challenge due to an injury.

The show, which debuted on Netflix on 5 February with Holly Willoughby and Bear Grylls at the helm, pits 12 celebrities against each other in the wilds of Costa Rica as they strive to evade capture by survival expert Bear and steer clear of elimination.

Tennis icon Boris Becker was among the stars competing, but had his journey cut short in the fourth episode after a severe injury necessitated surgery.

In a poignant moment, Becker called his fellow contestants together to announce his immediate departure for medical treatment.

"Come around, please. I have to say something. So guys, the doctor advised me that I have torn my meniscus. And I have a ligament sprain of my MCL. And so the whole medical team advised me to be out, to stop," he disclosed to the group.

Overcome with emotion, the tennis great tearfully bid farewell to the other participants, expressing: "I wish I could be with you, but I think we learned from each other. It's about not falling down, it's about overcoming and standing up again."

In a candid confession to the camera, Becker expressed his deep disappointment, saying: "I feel numb, I feel disappointed, really gutted. I really wanted to be in the Bear Hunt, to be chased by the great man.

"Well, being a tennis player, injury is your middle name. I've had about 15 surgeries by now. You know, it's the wear and tear. It's really the price you pay for being a professional athlete. And you know, I'm not a quitter. I can take pain but there's a limit when you have a real injury."

Boris was joined on the TV show by Joe Thomas, Kola Bokinni, Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Leomie Anderson, Lottie Moss, Mel B, Shirley Ballas, Steph McGovern, Una Healy, Big Zuu, and Danny Cipriani, reports the Mirror.

He expressed his enthusiasm on social media before the Netflix series premiered, telling his Instagram followers: "I'm so excited to finally share this with you! I've always been a huge @beargrylls fan and I was so thrilled to be part of this survival challenge in Costa Rica!

"Celebrity Bear Hunt premieres on @netflix on February 5th. It's going to be wild stay tuned! #celebritybearhunt #netflix #survival." (sic)

Celebrity Bear Hunt is available to stream on Netflix.