Nicole Scherzinger "trained like an Olympian" for her role in 'Sunset Boulevard'.

The 46-year-old pop star won an Olivier for her role as fading actress Norma Desmond in the West End revival of Andrew Lloyd Webber's classic musical last year, and now that she has been nominated for a Tony Award following its transfer to Broadway, she has admitted that she approaches every performance like an athlete.

She told Spectrum News: "I trained like an Olympian! Before I go on stage, my friend was asking me why I went on the trampoline, and I pace back and forth like I'm a boxer about to go on stage. I'm an Olympian. That's the level that we have to get physically, and emotionally ready for this show. And I'm just so grateful that I have all that in my back pocket because I've always just wanted to train myself like a weapon and be on it."

The former Pussycat Dolls star - who enjoyed success in the early 2000s as part of the dance/pop group with hits like 'Don't Cha' and 'Buttons - insisted that the part is everything she has "fought for" in her career so far.

She said: "It's one of the greatest roles ever for a woman. I'm in love with Norma Desmond, she's changed my life and it's everything I've worked for and fought for and prayed for and I finally get to share my whole heart and all of my gifts in this production."

Just prior to her stage success, former 'X Factor' judge Nicole admitted that she felt as if she been "discarded" by the industry because of her age.

In a conversation with 'Susnet Boulvard' directorJamie Lloyd filmed for People, she explained: "I'm [46] years old. I've never been more strong -- physically, mentally, emotionally. I'm in my prime. There is no better time for me to create work that is meaningful in this world. That's the tragedy: is that you're in the best place in your life. You're so fully, have so much to give, and people have discarded you, and dismissed you and said 'Your time's up...'"