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DCBLOG has long maintained a vision that those who watch these MTV's The Challenge shouldn't meet any rookies for the first time on the premiere itself. To this end, "Who Are These Newbies?" has allowed us to profile each & every first-time competitor on here since we began covering this show back in 2013. As The Challenge: USA is now underway, the most extensive series of rookie primers continues with part 3 of a 4-part series covering the franchise's first-ever foray into network television.
Survivor debuted on American television screens back in May of 2000, and it instantly clicked with a mainstream viewing public that, until then, had their network schedules filled with comedies, dramas, movies, miniseries, newsmagazines and the occasional special or sports event. From that first season onwards, Survivor became appointment television to so many of us, and the many twists and turns that's been offered in its forty-plus seasons have entertained three generations of viewers. Above all, it was the show that introduced the reality genre to the most coveted aspect of the world's most lucrative television market: American broadcast network television. And nothing is more soothing to fans of this show than getting to spend Wednesday nights with a bunch of castaways, host Jeff Probst and its theme.
Four years ago, the first inkling of thinking about the endless possibilities of Survivor castaways going on The Challenge began when two alumni of the show — Turbo from the Turkish version and Jay from the U.S. iteration — went onto MTV shows airing at the same time. The former won War of the Worlds in 2019 to add to his illustrious resume that's included being on several Survivor seasons, while the ladder who was on Millennials vs. Gen X would make his debut on Total Madness the following year after beginning as an ex on Season 2 of Ex On The Beach USA. Last year, three U.S. Sole Survivors took part in Michele, Natalie and Tommy, along with Jay's counterpart Michaela and Logan of Survivor Spain… but only Turbo and Jay have had considerable success on this totally different game.
Now, this show welcomes eight new competitors trying to follow in what those seven people have gotten to do on the big show, and this time the stage is just theirs. And ahead, we profile Survivor castaways turned Challenge USA rookies Ben, Danny, Desi, Domenick, Sarah, Shan, Tasha and Tyson on part 3 of "Who Are These Newbies?" of The Challenge's network television debut.
TYSON APOSTOL
● Seasons 18, 20, 27 & 40 WINNER
Tyson Apostol was a 29-year-old retired professional cyclist and swimmer from the Provo suburb of Lindon, where he described himself as "witty, charming and arrogant" who also possesses a "life of the party" swagger alongside his athleticism and his carefree ways. As a BYU dropout, he exchanged having college books for getting to not only know those street smarts but also traveling around the world both as a Mormon missionary in the Philippines and then as a six-year cyclist around the European continent. And when you glimpse over at his social media, he's also become an enthusiast in a game I played a bit back in high school: that racket sport of pickleball (we'll delve into that during this season on here).
Going into his first 39-day excursion into the wild, Tyson looked to other castaways for inspiration when it came to his gameplay approach: that meant deceit and manipulation of the other castaways while also being both brash and unapologetic... making him a perfect Survivor contestant. When he arrived in Brazil, he became a key member of the Timbira alliance and a feared competitor who won the first two individual Immunity Challenges following the merge, but who got blindsided in 8th place. Tyson then returned the following year on Heroes vs. Villains and joined Rob Mariano's Villains alliance, but got victimized by a much earlier exit as the second castaway to have their torch be extinguished.
Emboldened by his first two starts, Tyson was more than motivated when he was chosen for Season 27, Blood vs. Water in fall 2013, but who also came to the game with girlfriend Rachel Foulger by his side. Once she got the boot, he had to play on his own and his game matured to where he got to rely on both his experience and strategy, which saw him discover two hidden immunity idols, aligned with Season 1 original Gervese and Monica of One World, took down the Baskauskas brothers and Season 2 winner Tina, and endured a charge from Ciera, Hayden & their alliance to make the final tribal council. And with all but one casting their vote for him, Tyson had become Sole Survivor in the Philippines... and he returned one more time for Winners at War where despite winning his way back to the game from the show's own redemption house, he was eliminated in 11th place.
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TASHA FOX
● Seasons 28 & 31
When Tasha arrived in Asia, the Brains tribe fell apart quite quickly as she had to work with fellow tribemates Spencer and Kass to eventually make the merge point, but then had to endure being in the minority Aparri alliance while opposing the majority Solana alliance led by Tony Valachos. Knowing that she had to play her way into the deeper part of the season, Tasha showed her athletic ability in taking three straight individual immunity challenges before getting her flame snuffed out in 6th place.
Season 31 two years later gave popular non-champion castaways a Second Chance, and Tasha was one of those fortunate for another shot at the seven figures. This time, she changed around her game in emphasizing a more social one, which helped her into both the majority alliance and then another tribe where she manipulated a tribemate to gain control before its demise. Tasha would eventually make the final tribal council, but the jury didn't give her any love with any of their votes.
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SARAH LACINA
● Seasons 28, 34 & 40 WINNER
Sarah Lacina was a 29-year-old police officer patrolling the streets of Cedar Rapids, IA when she took a break from her duties to compete on that Brains vs. Brawns vs. Beauty season with Tasha. Describing herself as "competitive, athletic and witty," she loves boating, golfing, MMA and being in the gym when not in uniform, while also looking to her mom as her inspiration. Going into Survivor, Sarah approached things with the same mentality as her fellow Midwesterners: hard-working, motivator, manipulator, a strong determination, and just keep grinding even if the work is all done.
Once Sarah arrived in the Philippines, she was part of the original majority Aparri alliance early on but later found herself on her own after a switching around of tribes and after the merge. After the halfway point, she represented the swing vote among both the allies she had at the beginning, and the new version of it... and it was that power that cost Sarah her game. After that experience she recalled of her rookie season, "I feel like I had so much game left. I'm not really proud of the way I played. I chose my word & loyalty over $1 million. I would not make that mistake again. I will do whatever it takes to win."
It's with a bit of unfinished business having finished 11th as a rookie that, when Sarah came back for Game Changers in 2017, she changed up her gameplay for the sake of the $1 million by being more assertive. This time, she had to sift through the rough waters of playing with fellow returnees which led her to adopt a more cutthroat and aggressive game which she was reluctant to play as a rookie. There, she gained both a Vote Steal and Legacy Advantage which helped her to pull several blindsides and going back & forth with the Power Six and Tauva alliances where she established strong connections with members of both... and that was the difference in being named Season 34's Sole Survivor.
Back in Cagayan, a key ally of Sarah's was fellow cop Tony Vlachos from New Jersey who won that season while forming an alliance fittingly titled "Cops-R-Us." They were at it once again when they came onto Season 40 two years for Winners at War, where together with South Pacific winner Sophie Clarke overthrew Rob Mariano after a tribe switch to grab control of one tribe. After the merge, the three above joined the majority alliance that ran the rest of that $2 million season, where Sarah and Tony worked together to make the semifinal four... but when Natalie Anderson forced them into a fire-making challenge, she fell to the eventual winner one day short of the last tribal council.
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DESI WILLIAMS
● Season 35
One of those eighteen castaways was Desi Williams, a 27-year-old from Hampton Roads in Virginia who was working as a a physical therapist down in the Atlanta area. Seeing herself as "congenial, forthright and unremitting," she took part in pageants prior to going on the show when she was crowned Miss Virginia 2013 and Miss Virginia USA three years later, making top 10 at Miss USA 2016. Going into Survivor, Desi wanted the chance to compete because she would've preferred just going around the world than being in the doctor's office, and who felt her beauty, wit, charm, mental game and physicality would be enough to be the one.
Once Desi stepped into that island in Fiji, she preferred to just not make any noise in that Soko tribe, but who emerged to become a player who was both smart and resilient. It was never the more important than when she aligned with an enemy to begin with, Joe, to get by the switch of the tribes, and then win the first individual immunity challenge post-merge. But that came at a price: a tie vote between them saw her go out in 11th place thanks to her strong traits. But as she competes here, ironically Desi cited Tasha above as the contestant she is most like... now they're competing side by side here.
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BEN DRIEBERGEN
● Seasons 35 & 40 WINNER
Even before then, Ben had seen his dad come out to the family and he & his mom had gotten divorced. But once he was discharged from the Marines, he settled into working at a grocery warehouse while also being an at-home dad to his two kids and his wife Kelly. But once the opportunity came about of going onto Survivor, someone who saw himself as "strong-willed and motivated" yet funny had reason to go into battle once again, this time on a reality TV show. His strategy going in was to look to those like Russell Hantz and Boston Rob, who loved playing dirty and being confident... plus, the skills he acquired in the Marines would serve him well.
When LCpl. Driebergen stepped off the ship in Fiji's Mamanuca Islands, he was a vital member of the Heroes group who took up residency in Levu tribe but following a tribe switch would have to play catch-up in the minority alliance. But being able to grab challenge wins midway through gave him both swing vote status for the first post-merge tribal night and lead man status in the Round Table alliance before he was on the way out as a threat to the jury, and thus being placed at the bottom of their totem pole. But being able to both find and play three hidden immunity idols and win his way to the final three in that first fire-making competition earned him a final date around the campfire for that last Tribal Council... and despite considerable odds placed against him including one putting him down for having a weak social game than the others on the island, Ben still came away with the top prize.
Him coming away as Sole Survivor on Season 35 earned Ben a return date for Winners at War three years later, where the reputation he had forged in Fiji had poured over to Season 40. He began the season a bit rough both on the competitive side, and earning some mistrust from those in his Sele tribe... but as the season went on his position in the game improved. Still, he also had to deal with several rivals on the island in Rob (who won Redemption Island), Millennials vs. Gen X champ Adam Klein and Cambodia winner Jeremy Collins but eventually made it past the merge point. When the group became ten, he aligned with Sarah, Tony and Denise Stapley (Philippines winner) to go into the top 5. But in echoing what we saw with Cory & Nelson, Ben offered his blessings to Sarah at the final five.
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DOMENICK ABBATE
● Season 36
Domenick Abbate was a 38-year-old construction supervisor from the central Long Island, NY town of Nesconset when he took a break from building houses to compete on Survivor. Ten years earlier, he was just that ordinary guy who had no direction in life other than milling around at the local casinos, but when he welcomed his first daughter in 2008 while being overweight, Dom had to change his habits: he kicked aside the cigars, lost 60 pounds and turned his economic focus to spending money at the poker table to saving up for the Abbate family. And for one who saw himself as "calculated, intuitive and empathetic," he came to the island for a once-in-a-lifetime chance... other than that it's just a vacation.
When Domenick arrived on Ghost Island, he grew a reputation as an aggressive player which then made him a target within the Naviti tribe. He would form a strong bond over the rest of the game with Philadelphia furniture dealer Wendell Holland, and with the help of him and two others they would control the rest of the game with Dom being at the center of all of it. Post-merge, he took out his biggest threat in Chris, and he seemed well on the way to making his road to the $1 million a mere formality... that was until after he won the last immunity challenge.
A year earlier saw the first NFL championship game to go into overtime during the lifetimes of most of us, and some fifteen months afterwards came something that didn't happen on Survivor until its thirty-sixth season. The finale saw Dom have a chance to finally get the opportunity to take down Wendell and the $1 million... but the best laid plans he had would come apart when the jury had their say at the last tribal council. Both Dom and Wendell were tied at five votes apiece... and third placed finisher Laurel Johnson was left to cast the deciding vote: and by that difference, Dom's perfect season came short.
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SHAN SMITH
● Season 41
Like the one who would reign as the sole survivor of that return season, Shantel Smith, known simply as "Shan," grew up in Canada's largest city of Toronto... but who took a month's sabbatical from being a pastor in Washington, D.C. to compete on Survivor. Describing herself as "passionate, authentic and resilient, she was once in a gang but who has taken pride in being proud of what she's been able to do to tackle injustice and do hard work in therapy. Going into being on Survivor, Shan felt that she had what she felt was necessary to win: a solid work ethic, plenty of adversity, excellence and every other aspect necessary for anyone willing enough to be the last one standing.
When Shan arrived in Fiji for Survivor 41, she began in the ill-fated Ua tribe where she aligned with tribemate Ricard and Liana from rival tribe Yase before manipulating them and others to gain an advantage and a position of power, which eventually saw her lead the majority alliance after the merge. But being a threat to the rest of the players, combined with possession of a hidden immunity idol led to her demise by a blindside by her original ally Ric... and eventually fellow Canadian Erika was #1.
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DANNY McCRAY
● Season 41
Danny McCray grew up in Houston, TX, played at Westfield High School and in 2004 as a junior led his football team to the Class 5A state championship game where they fell short of their goal. He then spent four years at LSU where he spent was part of the special teams unit and backed up at defense, starting 13 games, recorded 196 tackles and three sacks. When he went undrafted in the 2010 draft, he signed as a free agent with the Cowboys and was assigned special teams specialist Bill Bates' old #40 number, where as a rookie he recorded 28 tackles in that position -- third most in the post-Landry era, followed by him taking over as special teams captain the following season.
McCray transitioned into more of a defensive player in 2012 when he had his first NFL start as he led the defensive tackles column at the expense of his special teams prowess. After a reduced presence the following season, in 2014 he signed on a year's deal with the Bears where he had a day vs. the Jets with 10 defensive tackles while contributing on the special unit. The next year, he was back in the Metroplex for one more stint where in the back-end of their divisional series with the hated Eagles, Danny blocked a punt that led to a TD... that was the last meaningful NFL highlight.
In his cast bio, Danny described himself as "competitive, charismatic and optimistic," and where his biggest accomplishment was not suiting up for those fall Sundays, but completing his graduate college degree program. After the passing of his dad, he has looked to his mom as his hero and inspiration in having to carry the family load for him and his siblings. And when the opportunity came around for Danny to go on Survivor, he came with the premise of winning and having something to prove... and he looked to the gameplay of Ben up above to follow into being on Season 41.
When Danny came into Fiji last year, his intent to prove that he is that the strong physical force had to take a taxiing position on the runway in the early portions of the season due to the Luvu tribe's winning spell. He had connections with Deshawn Radden of the ABA alliance (which consisted of them, Shan and Liana Wallace) as well as with fellow castaway Sydney Segal... but after choosing to vote for Shan his alliance would fall apart to the new majority, and eventually Danny was gone in 6th place after a tied vote between him and Deshawn.
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Ahead on the fourth & last installment of "Who Are These Newbies?" of The Challenge: USA, it's the latest crop from that part of the reality community that might have a long shot to excel here... but ask those like Devin, Amanda & Nelson what it's like to go from a reality dating show to The Challenge. It's the lovebirds from Love Island USA, which also includes who might be, on paper, Danny's biggest threat... and then we begin (on a delayed basis) our weekly episode coverage with all the social buzz from this week's premiere. We'll also have a special edition of the 'Pulse with the stretch run of Season 3 of All-Stars, plus the latest installment of homegrown drama from the world of Dre.Media. And we leave you with these words from the castaways...
- I AM DC
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Photo Courtesies: MTV, CBS and Paramount
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