The Biggest Loser will feature a pair of new trainers when it returns this fall.
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NBC has announced Jessie Pavelka and Jennifer Widerstrom will serve as new trainers for The Biggest Loser's sixteenth season when it premieres on the network on September 11.
The duo will replace Jillian Michaels and join existing The Biggest Loser trainers Bob Harper and Dolvett Quince, who will also return for the new season.
"We are excited to welcome Jessie and Jen into The Biggest Loser family, and know they will be valuable players on this life-changing show that continues to inspire millions of people to embrace a healthy lifestyle," NBC reality chief Paul Telegdy said. "We look forward to viewers meeting them and to revealing more great changes we have in store for the new season."
The new season of The Biggest Loser began production in late June and will once again be hosted by Alison Sweeney, according to the network.
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NBC had confirmed Michaels would be leaving The Biggest Loser for a third time last week.
"After helping hundreds of contestants transform their lives and inspiring millions of viewers at home, The Biggest Loser and Jillian Michaels have decided to part ways and she will not be returning for Season 16 when it airs in the fall," the network said in a statement.
Pavelka is an internationally recognized fitness expert who has appeared on several television series in the U.K., including Obese: A Year to Save My Life, FAT: The Fight of My Life, and Motivation Nation. In addition, the Texas native also was the featured trainer on DietTribe, a weight-loss reality series which aired on Lifetime in 2009.
Widerstrom is a top fitness expert and is also a former star of NBC's American Gladiators revival.
Reports that Michaels wanted to quit The Biggest Loser for the third time had first surfaced in April.
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"She is deeply concerned about the direction the show has been taking," a source told People at the time. "She is turned off by the mean-spirited story lines and poor care of the contestants."
The reports followed The Biggest Loser's controversial fifteenth season in which Rachel Frederickson, 24, won the show but dropped down to a shocking 105 pounds to do so. Frederickson had lost nearly 60 percent of her body weight for the finale in February, concerning both her trainers and viewers.
"Michaels wants to distance herself from The Biggest Loser brand," explained the source. "Especially considering what happened with Rachel, her feeling is that there isn't proper attention paid to the contestants' health or wellness."
In 2006, Michaels left the series after Season 2 due to a dispute about the show's creative direction. While she was replaced by trainer Kim Lyons for The Biggest Loser's third edition, she subsequently returned for Season 4 and stuck with it right up through Season 11.
However, Michaels left again after the show's eleventh edition for personal reasons that included starting a family. She later returned to The Biggest Loser for Season 14.
About The Author: Steven Rogers