Sandra Diaz-Twine
Encyclopedia
Sandra Diaz-Twine is the $1,000,000 winner of the seventh season of Survivor
, Survivor: Pearl Islands
and the winner of the 20th season in Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains; she is the show's only two-time winner. She was born in Stamford, Connecticut
, and currently lives with her husband and two children while working as a bank teller in Fayetteville, North Carolina
.
, Christa Hastie, Trish Dunn, and Jon Dalton
, a.k.a Jonny Fairplay. Diaz-Twine was the first person to sit out in a challenge and the first to raid on Morgan's camp as part of the reward, where not only did she take their tarp, but sabotaged their shelter. When Drake lost the fourth and fifth immunity
challenges, the alliance voted out the minority alliance's Burton Roberts and Michelle Tesauro. When Drake lost the sixth immunity challenge, the originally-targeted Shawn Cohen was saved when Sandra turned the alliance on Trish for instigating an attempted blindside of Rupert.
With the Drake and Morgan tribes even at five apiece, they were shocked when those six previously voted out came back into the game as a third tribe and subsequently won the immunity challenge, enabling two of these "outcasts" to return to the game at the price of two more voted out, one each from Drake and Morgan. In a game-changing move, Diaz-Twine, Rupert and Christa, not knowing whether to send home Shawn (the last minority alliance member left) or Jon (who betrayed them previously together with Trish), asked them to publicly campaign for their spot. The alliance eventually eliminated Shawn, and received Burton as a replacement from the outcasts group.
As the tribes merged into Balboa at 5-5, the Drake tribe, with the help of outcast Burton, was able to sway Morgan outcast Lillian Morris to vote with them, controlling the game and subsequently voting out Morgan leaders Andrew Savage and Ryan Opray. However, the game took a major shift when old Drake members Jon and Burton aligned themselves with Lillian, and recruited the remaining Morgan members Tijuana Bradley and Darrah Johnson. This new alliance successfully targeted Rupert and he was blindsided.
At the final 7, it seemed Diaz-Twine and Christa were doomed by this newly created alliance, but Diaz-Twine swayed Tijuana and Darrah when they spied on Burton and Jon showing them their true intentions (to eliminate the Morgan girls after Diaz-Twine and Christa). However, when Burton and Jon wised up to this impending mutiny, they regained the trust of Diaz-Twine and Christa (with the help of Jon's infamous "dead grandmother" fiasco) to successfully blindside Tijuana. But soon after they were betrayed once again when Burton and Jon switched sides and Christa was voted out next.
At the final 5, Darrah was the next target of Burton and Jon, but Lillian started to have suspicions about her alliance (which would prove true eventually). Burton made a potentially fatal error by inviting Jon on his reward trip, leaving the three women (including an angered Lillian) together back at camp, sparking a last minute scramble to break the bond between the two guys, eventually voting out Burton.
After Diaz-Twine made it to the final 4, she was no longer a target, with Lillian targeting physically strong Darrah and Darrah targeting Lillian, believing that no one could win against her in the final 2. Diaz-Twine and Jon decided to side with Lillian and vote out Darrah, propelling them into the final 3. In the final 3 endurance immunity challenge, Lillian won and chose to eliminate Jon, an error that led to Diaz-Twine's ultimate win.
In the end, after having previously stating that no one could ever win against Lillian because she was too nice, Diaz-Twine annihilated Lillian in the final vote, winning 6-1, to become the Sole Survivor. During her final statements at Tribal Council, Diaz-Twine described her strategy as being the one people would come to if they needed one more vote to oust someone ("anyone, as long as it ain't me"). She gained the votes of Ryan, Rupert, Christa, Burton, Darrah and Jon. Only Tijuana voted for Lillian.
due to recovering from parasites and being cut at the last minute for Survivor: Micronesia
, Diaz-Twine accepted a spot on Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains. She was one of four previous winners chosen; the other three were Tom Westman
of Survivor: Palau
, Parvati Shallow
of Survivor: Micronesia
, and J.T. Thomas
of Survivor: Tocantins. Diaz-Twine was placed on the Villains tribe, and in the first episode, when host Jeff Probst
asked who believed they were on the wrong tribe, Diaz-Twine was quick to point out that she did not think she should be on the Villains tribe. During the first reward challenge, Diaz-Twine tore off the top of Jessica "Sugar" Kiper. This, according to Cirie Fields
, solidified why she was chosen as a villain.
In episode 3, when the Villains faced their first tribal council, Diaz-Twine stuck with her old strategy used in the Pearl Islands of "as long as it ain't me". She, along with the rest of the Villains tribe, unanimously voted out Randy Bailey, formerly of Survivor: Gabon
. Despite previously appearing to be in a comfortable six person alliance, by Episode 8, Diaz-Twine found herself on the outs on her tribe alongside Courtney Yates
. Despite the pair being considered the weakest on the tribe, Diaz-Twine convinced Russell Hantz that Benjamin "Coach" Wade was against him, and the pair survived elimination at tribal council, only to have her only ally, Yates, voted off in the subsequent tribal council.
After the merge, Diaz-Twine pleaded with the Heroes not to trust Hantz. However, they did not listen, and despite several attempts to oust Hantz, Diaz-Twine would remain with the Villains after her plans to help the Heroes failed to materialize. Diaz-Twine would make it to the final three, along with Shallow and Hantz. On May 16, 2010, Sandra Diaz-Twine won Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, earning her a second $1,000,000 prize, and becoming the first contestant of Survivor to win twice. The $2,000,000 in prizes is the most money ever won by a woman in an American television contest
.
Survivor (U.S. TV series)
Survivor is an American version of the Survivor reality television game show, itself derived from the Swedish television series Expedition Robinson originally created in 1997 by Charlie Parsons. The series premiered on May 31, 2000 on CBS...
, Survivor: Pearl Islands
Survivor: Pearl Islands
Survivor: Pearl Islands is the seventh season of the United States reality show Survivor. It was filmed in 2003 and debuted in the United States on CBS on September 18, 2003....
and the winner of the 20th season in Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains; she is the show's only two-time winner. She was born in Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford, Connecticut
Stamford is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. According to the 2010 census, the population of the city is 122,643, making it the fourth largest city in the state and the eighth largest city in New England...
, and currently lives with her husband and two children while working as a bank teller in Fayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville, North Carolina
Fayetteville is a city located in Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is the county seat of Cumberland County, and is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a U.S. Army post located northwest of the city....
.
Pearl Islands
Diaz-Twine seemed like an early target for her lack of physical strength and inability to swim, but her knowledge of the language and her resourcefulness, which helped their tribe Drake gather much needed resources from local traders at the start of the game, put her in good stead with the majority of her tribe, eventually forming an alliance with Rupert BonehamRupert Boneham
Rupert Boneham is an American mentor for troubled teens who became known to reality television audiences in 2003 as a contestant on Survivor: Pearl Islands where he placed 8th. He later appeared on the All Stars and Heroes vs. Villains seasons of Survivor, placing 4th and 6th respectively...
, Christa Hastie, Trish Dunn, and Jon Dalton
Jon Dalton
John Dalton, also known as Jonny Fairplay , is a reality TV participant and former art consultant from Danville, Virginia. He came in third place as a competitor on the reality TV show Survivor: Pearl Islands...
, a.k.a Jonny Fairplay. Diaz-Twine was the first person to sit out in a challenge and the first to raid on Morgan's camp as part of the reward, where not only did she take their tarp, but sabotaged their shelter. When Drake lost the fourth and fifth immunity
Immunity (reality television)
Immunity in reality television is a concept that is widely used in weekly elimination-type reality television shows by which a contestant participating in such a show may not be "kicked off" or eliminated from competition in a particular time period...
challenges, the alliance voted out the minority alliance's Burton Roberts and Michelle Tesauro. When Drake lost the sixth immunity challenge, the originally-targeted Shawn Cohen was saved when Sandra turned the alliance on Trish for instigating an attempted blindside of Rupert.
With the Drake and Morgan tribes even at five apiece, they were shocked when those six previously voted out came back into the game as a third tribe and subsequently won the immunity challenge, enabling two of these "outcasts" to return to the game at the price of two more voted out, one each from Drake and Morgan. In a game-changing move, Diaz-Twine, Rupert and Christa, not knowing whether to send home Shawn (the last minority alliance member left) or Jon (who betrayed them previously together with Trish), asked them to publicly campaign for their spot. The alliance eventually eliminated Shawn, and received Burton as a replacement from the outcasts group.
As the tribes merged into Balboa at 5-5, the Drake tribe, with the help of outcast Burton, was able to sway Morgan outcast Lillian Morris to vote with them, controlling the game and subsequently voting out Morgan leaders Andrew Savage and Ryan Opray. However, the game took a major shift when old Drake members Jon and Burton aligned themselves with Lillian, and recruited the remaining Morgan members Tijuana Bradley and Darrah Johnson. This new alliance successfully targeted Rupert and he was blindsided.
At the final 7, it seemed Diaz-Twine and Christa were doomed by this newly created alliance, but Diaz-Twine swayed Tijuana and Darrah when they spied on Burton and Jon showing them their true intentions (to eliminate the Morgan girls after Diaz-Twine and Christa). However, when Burton and Jon wised up to this impending mutiny, they regained the trust of Diaz-Twine and Christa (with the help of Jon's infamous "dead grandmother" fiasco) to successfully blindside Tijuana. But soon after they were betrayed once again when Burton and Jon switched sides and Christa was voted out next.
At the final 5, Darrah was the next target of Burton and Jon, but Lillian started to have suspicions about her alliance (which would prove true eventually). Burton made a potentially fatal error by inviting Jon on his reward trip, leaving the three women (including an angered Lillian) together back at camp, sparking a last minute scramble to break the bond between the two guys, eventually voting out Burton.
After Diaz-Twine made it to the final 4, she was no longer a target, with Lillian targeting physically strong Darrah and Darrah targeting Lillian, believing that no one could win against her in the final 2. Diaz-Twine and Jon decided to side with Lillian and vote out Darrah, propelling them into the final 3. In the final 3 endurance immunity challenge, Lillian won and chose to eliminate Jon, an error that led to Diaz-Twine's ultimate win.
In the end, after having previously stating that no one could ever win against Lillian because she was too nice, Diaz-Twine annihilated Lillian in the final vote, winning 6-1, to become the Sole Survivor. During her final statements at Tribal Council, Diaz-Twine described her strategy as being the one people would come to if they needed one more vote to oust someone ("anyone, as long as it ain't me"). She gained the votes of Ryan, Rupert, Christa, Burton, Darrah and Jon. Only Tijuana voted for Lillian.
Heroes vs. Villains
After declining a spot on Survivor: All-StarsSurvivor: All-Stars
Survivor: All-Stars is the eighth season of the United States reality show Survivor. It was filmed in 2003 and debuted in the United States on CBS on February 1, 2004 after Super Bowl XXXVIII. It was set on the Pearl Islands of Panama, where the previous Survivor: Pearl Islands had just finished...
due to recovering from parasites and being cut at the last minute for Survivor: Micronesia
Survivor: Micronesia
Survivor: Micronesia — Fans vs. Favorites is the sixteenth season of the American CBS competitive reality television series Survivor, being the show's third to include contestants from past seasons, after the all-returning contestant pool from Survivor: All-Stars, and Survivor: Guatemala in which...
, Diaz-Twine accepted a spot on Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains. She was one of four previous winners chosen; the other three were Tom Westman
Tom Westman
Tom Westman is the $1,000,000 winner of the tenth season of the reality show Survivor, Survivor: Palau. Westman is a husband, father of three, and former firefighter. Westman has a deaf daughter. He announced his retirement from the department effective August 8, 2005...
of Survivor: Palau
Survivor: Palau
Survivor: Palau is the tenth season of the United States reality show Survivor. Its preview appeared during the final episode of Survivor: Vanuatu. Survivor: Palau premiered on February 17, 2005. The complete season, including the Live Reunion Show, was released on DVD by CBS Home Video on August...
, Parvati Shallow
Parvati Shallow
Parvati Shallow is the $1,000,000 winner of the reality television series Survivor: Micronesia after receiving votes from Eliza Orlins, Jason Siska, Alexis Jones, Natalie Bolton, and Cirie Fields. She had previously competed in Survivor: Cook Islands where she placed sixth, and later was the...
of Survivor: Micronesia
Survivor: Micronesia
Survivor: Micronesia — Fans vs. Favorites is the sixteenth season of the American CBS competitive reality television series Survivor, being the show's third to include contestants from past seasons, after the all-returning contestant pool from Survivor: All-Stars, and Survivor: Guatemala in which...
, and J.T. Thomas
James Thomas, Jr.
James "J. T." Thomas, Jr. is the US$1,000,000 winner of the American television show Survivor: Tocantins.-Early life:Thomas was raised in Samson, Alabama and he currently resides in Mobile, Alabama...
of Survivor: Tocantins. Diaz-Twine was placed on the Villains tribe, and in the first episode, when host Jeff Probst
Jeff Probst
Jeffrey Lee "Jeff" Probst is an American game show host, executive producer and a reporter. He is best known as the host of the U.S. version of the reality show Survivor.-Biography:...
asked who believed they were on the wrong tribe, Diaz-Twine was quick to point out that she did not think she should be on the Villains tribe. During the first reward challenge, Diaz-Twine tore off the top of Jessica "Sugar" Kiper. This, according to Cirie Fields
Cirie Fields
Cirie Fields is a married mother of three children and a repeat contestant on CBS's Survivor television series. Fields has appeared in three seasons, Survivor: Panama, Survivor: Micronesia, and Survivor: Heroes vs...
, solidified why she was chosen as a villain.
In episode 3, when the Villains faced their first tribal council, Diaz-Twine stuck with her old strategy used in the Pearl Islands of "as long as it ain't me". She, along with the rest of the Villains tribe, unanimously voted out Randy Bailey, formerly of Survivor: Gabon
Survivor: Gabon
Survivor: Gabon — Earth's Last Eden is the seventeenth season of the American CBS competitive reality television series Survivor. The premiere aired September 25, 2008, with the first two episodes screened back-to-back....
. Despite previously appearing to be in a comfortable six person alliance, by Episode 8, Diaz-Twine found herself on the outs on her tribe alongside Courtney Yates
Courtney Yates
Courtney Yates is a waitress who became part of the reality television show Survivor: China in 2007, finishing second to winner Todd Herzog. In 2010, Yates returned to the series for all-star edition Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains...
. Despite the pair being considered the weakest on the tribe, Diaz-Twine convinced Russell Hantz that Benjamin "Coach" Wade was against him, and the pair survived elimination at tribal council, only to have her only ally, Yates, voted off in the subsequent tribal council.
After the merge, Diaz-Twine pleaded with the Heroes not to trust Hantz. However, they did not listen, and despite several attempts to oust Hantz, Diaz-Twine would remain with the Villains after her plans to help the Heroes failed to materialize. Diaz-Twine would make it to the final three, along with Shallow and Hantz. On May 16, 2010, Sandra Diaz-Twine won Survivor: Heroes vs. Villains, earning her a second $1,000,000 prize, and becoming the first contestant of Survivor to win twice. The $2,000,000 in prizes is the most money ever won by a woman in an American television contest
American game show winnings records
This article lists American game show winnings records and goes into the history and people who have held them. Through the years there have been number of big winners as American game shows competed for viewers with ballooning prizes....
.