Since Survivor premiered in the year 2000, there have been so many seasons that new fans have to figure out which to watch first. That means that hundreds of people have gotten the chance to play on Jeff Probst’s beloved reality show.

When most Survivor players from the past left to play the game, they hoped to become one of the winners. However, even some of Survivor’s best players who played during one of the greatest seasons have learned how difficult the game can be. One of the reasons why Survivor can be so hard is some challenges are so dangerous that players have been medically evacuated. With that in mind, it is fascinating to look at what competing in a Survivor challenge really is like.

Survivor Challenges Could Be Dangerous For Players

In July 2019, Mashable published an article that revealed the results of a YouGov poll conducted at that time. According to that poll, 12% of the 1,732 men who were asked thought they could score a point if they played tennis against Serena Williams. Considering how incredibly skilled she is, the idea that many people thought they could score against her is laughable.

The fact that so many people thought they could score on Serena shows how easy it is to underestimate how difficult something is from afar. Similarly, it seems like many fans wildly underestimate how dangerous completing Survivor challenges can be.

In September 2023. People published an article that revealed 25 wild Survivor rules that fans don’t realize the players have to follow. For that article, the outlet spoke to Jeff Probst and three of the show’s producers, Matt Van Wagenen, Kahaia Pearson, and Jesse Jensen.

While talking to the outlet, one of the show’s producers explained that Survivor players don’t have to be incredibly fit to play. However, the producer explained that Survivor players have to be fit enough to handle the challenges.

“There isn’t a formal checklist of physical requirements in order to be on Survivor, you just have to be able to handle living in a real jungle and be agile enough to handle the various elements you see in challenges.”

As People’s article continued, it revealed how demanding challenges can be.

One of the show’s producers told People that Survivor’s challenges are meant to be possible for a wide variety of people.

Even though a wide array of people are supposed to be able to complete the challenges, that doesn’t take away from how intense they are.

While talking to People for the aforementioned article, one of Survivor’s producers explained that the challenges could be dangerous. As a result, the producers told People that they are very careful about doing medical examinations to ensure players can safely complete challenges.

“If anyone has a past injury or a specific physical condition that could be an issue we always talk to their doctors and get them cleared to play the game.”

The producer went on to explain to People how far they take things to make sure they protect Survivor players from challenges that could endanger them.

As Survivor’s producers explained to People, the team behind the show makes sure that people who can’t complete the challenges safely aren’t cast on the show.

“We take the health and safety of the players very seriously and would never put someone on the show that we did not believe was fully capable of lasting the entire time.”

Of course, some people may think that Survivor’s producers are always going to defend the show. However, there is proof that the team behind Survivor takes the safety of the players seriously. For example, in August 2013, Jeff Probst told Entertainment Weekly that RC Saint-Amour and her father were supposed to compete during Survivor: Blood vs. Water. However, the duo was pulled when the medical team found that RC’s father had very high pressure before the game began. Considering RC was a Survivor veteran they wanted back, their willingness to pull her to ensure her father’s safety speaks volumes.

A Lot Happens Before Survivor Challenges Than Fans See

The aforementioned People article about Survivor rules that fans don’t know about reveals more facts about the show’s challenges. As it turns out, a lot happens before the Survivor challenges begin that isn’t revealed on the show.

While speaking to People for the article, Jeff Probst explained that he speaks to the players about the challenges for a lot longer than it seems. As Jeff explained, he spends a lot of time walking the players through every step of the challenges.

“What you see me tell the players on the show is the most basic description of the challenge. We do this so the audience can get a big picture idea of how it works. Then, off-camera, I take each tribe separately through the entire challenge with our challenge team.”

Jeff also revealed to People that after explaining everything, he answers any questions the players may have about the challenge. Furthermore, Jeff explained how fascinating the questions he gets asked about the challenges can be.

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“We explain the challenge in detail and answer any questions they have. This is a very interesting process because you can see the different strategies for each tribe starting to form. We do the same thing with individual challenges. We never run a challenge until everyone understands all the layers.”

Another notable thing that People’s article reveals about what happens at Survivor challenge is arguably the most important detail of all.

Before the challenges begin, the players get regular checks from the medical team to monitor their health while playing the game. Jeff also explained to People that they don’t hesitate to stop the challenges and get the medical team involved if there is anything to be concerned about.

Survivor

Release Date

May 31, 2000

Network

CBS

Showrunner

Jeff Probst

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