Survivor winner Mark Wales’ brutal body transformation

Mark Wales has pocketed $500k as Survivor’s newest winner - but 47 days in the outback took a huge toll on his body.

WARNING: Survivor spoilers below.

After 47 days in the harsh Queensland outback and one gruelling final challenge, Australian Survivor has crowned a new winner, with ex-SAS powerhouse Mark Wales unanimously awarded the title of sole survivor - and a cool $500,000 - by the jury.

But speaking to news.com.au the morning after his win was revealed, Wales revealed that the game took a huge toll on his body, with those remaining in the final days of the game all feeling their bodies “deteriorate” at around the six-week mark.

He estimates he lost a jaw-dropping 17kg during his time in the game.

Mark (left) at the start of the game and at the end.

And it was a similar story for Mark’s wife Sam, eliminated on Day 40 - she later revealed she’d shed 6kg, or more than 12% if her body weight, during the game. She warned fans that she “wasn’t celebrating” the weight loss, which was proof of just how tough the conditions are on Survivor.

But the couple are now $500,000 richer - and Mark, who didn’t want to get ahead of himself before the win aired last night, told news.com.au he hadn’t thought too much about how they’d spend it.

“Sam and I are both self-employed... this money will put us ahead by a good decade or so, and give us more freedom to spend time with (son) Harry,” he said.

How Mark’s win went down

Two men and two women remained in the game heading into the finale: Josh, Mark, Chrissy and Shay - and they battled it out in a tough final immunity challenge that pushed them all to their limits.

Survivor's final four go head-to-head.

The foursome all had to stand on a wooden platform leaning over a waterfall, hanging on to wooden blocks as they dangled precariously over the frightening drop. At regular intervals, they had to reach out further and further to hold onto lower rungs.

After the 90-minute mark, the contestants really started to suffer - and Chrissy was first to drop, followed by Josh.

A very precarious final challenge.

But this season’s challenge beast Shay never seemed to break a sweat, beating Mark and guaranteeing herself a spot in the final three - and for the first time in Australian Survivor history, three rather than two would get the chance to plead their cases to the jury.

Josh seemed to be firming as a favourite to win, but he fell at the final hurdle, with his closest ally Chrissy turning on him by writing his name down and sending him to the jury.

And speaking of the jury - it’s always a little treat for Survivor viewers to see what the contestants look like once they’ve joined the jury and had a chance to wash weeks of grime and dirt off themselves. The newest member of the jury KJ - who went home in Sunday’s penultimate episode - didn’t disappoint with this post-elimination glow-up:

KJ before her elimination on Sunday...

...and all glammed up on the jury.

With Josh voted out (and with barely a goodbye to the three who ousted him), it was time for Mark, Chrissy and Shay to face the music.

Mark went first, methodically laying out his moves, vote-by-vote, throughout the game, positioning himself as a tactical player. Shay spoke next, sharing her underdog story and reminding the jury of her incredible physical strength in the game.

Chrissy was last, talking up her tactics as a social game player - someone who’d been to many tribal councils but only ever copped a handful of votes throughout her 47 days in the game. And her social gameplay continued, as she heaped praise on the members of the jury, thanking them for all they’d taught her in the game.

L-R: Chrissy, Shay and Mark battle it out for the jury.

Then they faced a grilling from the jury, with Shay in particular facing a frosty reception when she was asked to rate her performance in the game and giving herself an “8.5.”

Newly-eliminated Josh slammed Chrissy for throwing him “under the bus,” demanding to know why she had voted him out - conveniently ignoring the fact that he voted for her at the same tribal council. As two-time player Nick Iadanza put it:

Does Josh realize that he voted for Chrissy too? In the question to Mark he talked about his plan to blindside Chrissy. Am I missing something. Surely I'm missing something?#SurvivorAU

— Nick Iadanza (@nickiadanza) April 4, 2022

Mark also faced some tough questions from the jury, several of whom he’d burned throughout the game.

But they also clearly respected him - Mark got every single vote to win from the jury (which included wife Sam, a key ally in his corner).

It marked the end of an incredible Survivor story for Mark and Sam, who met on the show and fell for each other, getting voted out during their first season because of their obvious attachment to each other.

Returning as a married couple with a young son, they dominated this season - and always viewed a Survivor win as a collective victory for both of them. They’re now $500,000 richer thanks to that gameplay.

Meanwhile, season favourite Jordie may have been voted out in the final stretch of the game, but he did end up with quite the consolation prize: He’s now dating Sam Frost, sister to fellow Survivor contestant Alex, who dropped out of the game earlier this season due to injury.

Alex was competing in the show with Sam’s then-boyfriend Jay Bruno, but the pair split shortly after filming.

Originally published as Survivor winner Mark Wales’ brutal body transformation