Strictly Come Dancing's Mark Foster bares all as he does a Becks in his briefs

As far as impersonations go, it is worthy of a gold medal.

With his finely honed physique and effortless smoulder, Mark Foster's attempt to recreate David Beckham's notorious Armani advert is virtually flawless.

And save for the odd grey hair, his likeness is all the more remarkable given he is approaching his 40th birthday.

Strictly Come Stripping: Mark Foster shows off his impressive figure in a David Beckham-style pose

Inspiration: David Beckham caused a stir in their provocative pose last year, prompting speculation his package had been airbrushed

However, there does appear to be one particular area in which the swimmer fails to measure up to the England footballer.

While Mr Beckham showed off a suspiciously large bulge in his own pictures, the 6ft 5in Olympian falls slightly short in that department.

Either way, both sportsmen appear to have made use of some rather strategic padding during their respective photoshoots.

Explaining his decision to strip down, Foster said: 'I’m so used to swimming in a pair of trunks and being in next to nothing anyway, stripping to a pair of underpants isn’t a major issue for me. But I don’t see myself as a heartthrob - I’m just me.'

The 38-year-old competed in his fifth Olympics in Beijing this summer although failed to win a medal after tumbling out in the early stages of the competition.

However, he is currently appearing on Strictly Come Dancing where he is one of the favourites to win the competition with partner Hayley Holt.

And while he has never spoken openly about his love-life he says of his most appealing qualities: 'I can cook. Even though I went out on the first round of Masterchef, I can cook. I find cooking very therapeutic.

'I’m also very good at doing as I’m told. I’m pretty tidy, and by the end of this I’ll know my way around a dancefloor.'

Whispers began to circulate after a giant 100ft high poster of Beckham was unveiled outside a San Francisco department store in June.

Fans could not help noticing that he appeared more well proportioned than he did when pictured in a pair of skimpy trunks while on holiday in Italy two years ago.

It lead to claims that the 33-year-old former England captain had benefited from a little computer enhancement, although this was denied by a representative.

And the rumours certainly did little to harm the popularity of the campaign. Sales of the £14 underwear have soared since the campaign was first unveiled.

A spokesman for Foster also denied that there had been any digital enhancement carried out on the pictures: "There is no debate. Nothing has been changed on the computer," he said.

The full interview and exclusive photos are in Now magazine, out today.

Dancing shoes: Mark Foster twirls his partner Hayley Holt around the floor in Strictly Come Dancing