Survivor is for lovers? Survivor: Island of the Idols contestants Elizabeth Beisel and Jack Nichting didn’t win the completion, but they got so much more — each other.
“WOAH. Did you guys hear the news?” Biesel, 27, wrote via Instagram on Thursday, December 19, announcing the fact that she and Nichting, 23, were now dating. “I’ve got a curly haired boyfriend named Jack and he is simply the most wonderful human being I know.
The Rhode Island native added, “And yes, we share hair products.”
In the photo announcement, followers see the former Olympian getting a piggyback ride from her new boyfriend, showing off their matching hairstyles as they almost kiss.
Nichting also showed his excitement over being in a relationship with Biesel on his Instagram account on Thursday.
“I am beyond proud to call this curly headed, exuberant, and compassionate woman my girlfriend/twin,” he captioned a series of photos with his lady love. In his four pictures, fans can see the pair laughing together, hanging out in a pool, dressed up as tigers and kissing as their similar curls blow in the wind.
The former reality stars revealed their new relationship on social media the day after the season 39 Survivor finale and reunion aired on CBS on Wednesday, December 18. The lovebirds did not attend the CBS pretaped reunion, but they do have the show to thank for meeting.
Beisel was voted out on day 30 of the competition after Karishma Patel decided to use her hidden immunity idol to save herself. At the time, she called her exit “bittersweet.” She revealed during her Ponderosa interview on November 27 that “I’ve made new friendships that will last an entire lifetime. So, I think the pros outweigh the cons of me getting voted out right now.”
Nichting was voted out much earlier in the season, during the seventh episode. Both he and Beisel were then sent to be a part of the jury. “I’m really sad I’m out of the game,” he said in an exit interview for the show. “Overall this was way freaking harder than I thought it would be.”
This season was full of controversy after contestant Dan Spilo was removed from the series ahead of the finale for an “off-camera incident,” which came after fellow castaway Kellee Kim told him she was uncomfortable with his touching.
Before he was asked to leave the show, CBS aired a #MeToo-centric episode on November 13. After it aired, other contestants, including Beisel, came forward to apologize for the way they handled the accusations against Spilo.
“After watching the episode, my eyes were opened to a completely different truth, and I received an abundance of information that I was entirely unaware of while playing the game,” the Olympic swimmer tweeted on November 14. “I had no idea the severity of the situation. As a player, I am limited to my own experiences and knowing what I know now, my decisions would have been very different.”
She then addressed her tribemates Kim, 30, and Janet Carbin, since both were the most vocal about Spilo’s actions.
“To Kellee. I was sick to my stomach watching the episode and seeing how much pain you were in,” she tweeted. “I wholeheartedly apologize to you for using your accusations against Dan for gameplay. In no world is that acceptable, and I take full responsibility for my actions, and lack thereof.”
She then apologized to Carbin saying, “I deeply regret ever taking advantage of you in the game this way. Watching the episode, it was clear your sole intention was to protect us women, and I am distraught by the way I handled this situation. I am extremely sorry.”
Lastly, she focused on “women everywhere” with a statement on the importance of believing sexual harassment survivors.
“Sexual harassment and sexual assault are extremely serious, life altering topics that I do not take lightly,” she wrote at the time. “They have no business being used as tactics to further one’s own agenda, whether it be in real life or in the game of Survivor. I am beyond disappointed in my behavior and will use this as a life-changing, teaching moment.”
