Over 13 seasons of Australian Survivor, more than 200 eager players have attempted to outwit, outlast, and outplay their competitors.
But alas, only one player can emerge triumphant and take home the glorious title of Sole Survivor and the life-changing $500,000 prize money that comes with it.
While it remains to be seen which player from Australian Survivor: Redemption will join the Hall of Fame, we have taken a stroll down memory lane to catch up with previous winners and see what their lives have looked like since winning the show.
Who has won Australian Survivor?
Rob Dickson
Season one
In 2002, former Hawthorne and Brisbane Bears AFL player and film director Rob Dickson made Survivor history as the first winner of the Australian series. As one of the first 16 castaways, Rob secured his name in the final two by winning the final immunity challenge to become victorious.
Rob directed documentaries such as The Passion to Play, Shane Crawford Exposed, and The Essence of The Game.
Tragically, Rob died in a car accident in 2009, along with his five-year-old son Byron, while holidaying in South Africa. His eight-year-old son, Gabriel, lost his life four days later due to injuries sustained in the crash.
Guy Leech
Season two
Former Ironman surf life-saving champion Guy Leech appeared on the Seven Network’s Australian Celebrity Survivor: Vanuatu in 2006. He competed against 11 other celebrities for a cash prize of $100,000 to donate to a charity of choice.
Despite a twist elimination, he made his way back into the game, returning and taking home an extra $95,000 for the charity Ride Aid. He used the money to generously build two schools in North Cambodia.
He lives on Sydney’s northern beaches with his wife and two daughters.
Speaking to the Daily Telegraph in 2022, Guy said he’d become less competitive over the years.
“There was a time when if I didn’t win I’d be angry for a week, but those days are gone,” he told the publication.
“That competitive side never really goes away, but before I try to be up the front and winning, I need to accept that I’m not training five hours every day like I once did.”
Kristie Bennett
Season three
In 2016, Sydney-based senior account executive Kristie Bennett was crowned the first female winner of Australian Survivor at only 24 years old. After Kristie took her winnings, she did not want to return to her life as an account exec.
Kristie previously spoke out about the seriously damaging effects of being a reality TV star on Instagram, where she revealed that some of the challenges on the show had taken a serious mental and physical toll on her health.
“Going through the brutalness of starving, never sleeping, sitting in the rain for 8hrs doesn’t appeal to me. I wish there was a Survivor where you didn’t feel like you were dying in it,” she posted on Instagram at the time.
“And no ‘we did not sign up for that’ we signed up with courage and determination to chase our dreams. Not have our mental health destroyed.”
She now spends her time living her best life on Instagram, travelling around the world. She also has her own mentoring business, where she provides advice for those hoping to get cast on Survivor.
Jericho Malabonga
Season four
Victorian flight attendant Jericho Malabonga (aka the cookie thief) was the Sole Survivor in 2017.
The husband and father of two boys promised his family that if he won, he would use the winnings for a trip to Disneyland, which he ultimately did make happen!
Today, Jericho still works as a flight attendant while working on his fitness and travelling the world. The father of two also spends his time volunteering in Cambodia, where he was joined by former Survivor contestants in 2018.
He returned in 2019 for the show’s All-Stars season, but his torch was snuffed at his first tribal council.
Shane Gould
Season five
Former Australian competitive swimmer and three-time Olympic gold medalist Shane Gould competed in the first instalment of Champions vs Contenders in 2018.
Winning half a million dollars, Shane made it her mission to put the money to good use, telling one publication she wanted to “do good work in drowning prevention,” and help people overcome their fear of water.
Nowadays, Shane enjoys her time travelling with friend and former Survivor runner-up Sharn Coombes.
Like Jericho, Shane returned for All Stars with her motto: “Don’t f— with Shane Gould!” Unfortunately, her time on All Stars was dramatically shorter than her winning streak from Champions vs Contenders.
Pia Miranda
Season six
In 2019, Pia took the coveted title of Sole Survivor in a unanimous 9–0 vote.
The actress, who won Australia’s heart 26 years ago when she portrayed Josie in Looking For Alibrandi, was a long-time fan of the show and lived out her dream of competing and winning.
Today, Pia spends her days enjoying family time with her two kids and loving husband, while catching up with former Survivor castmates.
In 2023, she also released her memoir, Finding My Bella Vita, offering fans a detailed insight into the “peaks and troughs” of her life so far.
Most recently, she appeared in the TV series Invisible Boys and the movie Windcatcher.
David Genat
Season seven
You know what they say: the second time’s a charm, and that’s exactly what happened for this ‘golden god’ after he emerged victorious from Australian Survivor: All-Stars.
After his time on the show wrapped, David went on to star on The Celebrity Apprentice in 2021 as well as host an adventure reality show on Channel Nine called RUSH.
In 2025, the reality star won the second season of the reality game show Deal or No Deal Island and took home US$5 million.
Later that year, it was announced that David would replace long-running Australian Survivor host Jonathan LaPaglia from the 2026 season of Australian Survivor: Redemption onwards.
Earlier this year, during an appearance on the Carrie and Tommy show, David revealed he’d reached out to Jonathan after the news was announced, but he did not receive a reply.
“I wouldn’t say we’re friends,” he said. “But it’s fine. Of course, you’re upset when you lose a job, but I’ve lost so many jobs and been upset. It was not my fault, so what can he say?”
“I reached out to him, and I just was like, ‘Listen…’ I can’t touch Jonathan’s legacy,” he continued.
“He’s been so good. I can just pay respects, and that’s what I said to him. I was like, ‘You’ve been so good with this role, I’m not trying to be you or change what you did. I just want to pay respect to what you’ve done’ … He’s been integral to the franchise and to the game.”
You can read more about David’s family life here.
Hayley Leake
Season eight
Hayley, a pain researcher, was the Sole Survivor of season 8, which was called Australian Survivor: Brains vs Brawn.
She was originally voted out unanimously but was saved by a Redemption Rock twist and went on to win the series.
Hayley returned to the show in 2023 for Australian Survivor: Heroes vs Villains but was voted out after she reached the top seven.
In 2023, she married her long-time love, Jimmy, and in early 2024, they welcomed their first child together, a daughter they named Chloe.
Mark Wales
Season nine
Since winning Blood vs Water, what hasn’t Mark done?
As well as working as a resilience speaker, Mark has also published a book titled Survivor: Life in the SAS and even kick-started his acting career with stints in television and in George Miller’s Mad Max: Furiosa.
The season 9 winner and his wife, Sam Gash (whom he met on Australian Survivor season four), have ended their marriage, but still happily co-parent their son Harry together.
Mark has since gone on to date Australian Survivor season 1 contestant Phoebe Timmins, and earlier this month, the couple welcomed a baby girl.
The pair first announced their romance in April 2025, following speculation that Mark had split from Sam.
“I’m very, very lucky to have met someone who I really love,” Mark later wrote in an Instagram post.
“She is kind, honest, thoughtful, very smart, has a huge heart, is a great mother and an even better partner.”
Phoebe later told Yahoo Lifestyle the couple reconnected as friends first.
“Mark and I were old acquaintances who reconnected through genuine friendship towards the end of last year,” she told the publication.
“At the time, he was separated and single, and I was adjusting to life as a new mum, so romance was far from my mind. What grew between us happened slowly and naturally – over time, a more meaningful connection developed, which really caught me by surprise.”
Liz Parnov
Season 10
It’s been three years since Olympic pole vaulter Liz Parnov was crowned the winner of Heroes vs Villains.
Since then, the 31-year-old has launched a self-help group for women called Elevat3u. On the official Instagram page for the business, Liz writes that Elevat3u is a “community where you belong, look after your body & prioritise your mental [health].”
She’s also currently dating StreetX entrepreneur Daniel Bradshaw. The couple welcomed a son, whom they named Texas, in 2024.
Feras Basal
Season 11
In 2024, Sydney HR manager Feras Basal won the unanimous vote and took home half a million dollars.
Speaking about his win on Instagram, Feras said it was an “emotional rollercoaster” and was thankful for the journey.
Upon winning, he told Media Week he would not spend it all at once and instead invest in his future and a holiday.
Since being on the show, Feras continues to work in HR and regularly posts comedy videos on his TikTok.
He has also started a podcast with his friend called Yaz and Feras The Podcast.
Myles Kuah
Season 12
Self-described “jungle rat” Myles took home the title of Sole Survivor in the 12th overall season (but 10th season of the reboot of the show) in April 2025.
At the time, he exclusively told New Idea that he planned on investing all of his winnings to set himself up “for life”.
He also revealed that since filming had wrapped, he had caught up with his co-stars, especially AJ.
“AJ lives a ten-minute walk from me, so I have caught up with AJ many, many times,” he told us at the time.
Since then, Myles has been busy sharing his life on social media, where he shares everything from investing advice to his favourite fashion, pole dancing, and comedy skits.
