Winter Olympics gold medallist Lydia Lassila signed up to Australian Survivor after being encouraged by her husband Lauri, a former top-class freestyle skier from Finland.
Lydia won gold in aerial freestyle skiing at the Vancouver Winter Olympics in 2010. She announced her retirement from the slopes after competing at her fifth Winter Games in South Korea in February.
“I first said no to doing the show because all the attention during and after the Olympics was on me,” Lydia, 36, explains.
“I thought, ‘Enough is enough.’ I just wanted to be home with my kids.
“But I discussed it with Lauri and he said I had to give it a go, because I love the show.”
Lydia Lassila joins the Champions tribe on Australian Survivor 2018.
Mother to Kai, seven, and two-year-old Alek, Lydia admits she felt guilty about being away from her family again for ages.
“I potentially won’t see my kids for a really long time, so I’m kind of dealing with that now,” she says.
Lydia promises to play a hard but fair game, just as she approached her sporting career.
And she believes she’s well equipped to cope with the physical and mental challenges that come with being a contestant on Australian Survivor.
“I know what I’m capable of,” Lydia, who is part of the Champions tribe, says. “And if it’s tough, then I know I can dig deep and get through it.”
Lydia made an impressive debut on Australian Survivor when the first episode premiered overnight. She beat Contender Jenna in an early challenge, to score the Champions tribe a bag of pineapples.
Her tribe went on to beat the Contenders in the first challenge of 2018, avoiding the first elimination at tribal council as a result.
Police Officer Matt was the first person eliminated from the competition, being voted out by his tribe after a lengthy rant during the council.
Australian Survivor continues tonight, with the second episode airing at 7:30pm on Channel Ten.
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