Australian Survivor: Heroes Vs Villains 2023 Winner Announced

Spoilers ahead. After weeks of immunity challenges, finding idols and scheming plans before tribal council, the winner of Australian Survivor: Heroes vs Villains was announced on Monday night as Liz Parnov.

"I actually cannot believe it. I can't believe I'm here and can't believe I won," Parnov said after she learnt she had won.

The grand finale for the 2023 season featured three remaining contestants Parnov, Matt Sharp and Gerry Geltch left to battle it out for the $500,000 prize after George Mladenov was booted off.

After winning the final immunity challenge, Parnov was able to go straight through to the final three, and she, Sharp and Geltch all decided to vote out Mladenov. Then, it was up to each of the finalists to plead their case to the. jury about why they should win Australian Survivor: Heroes vs Villains.

Ahead of the finale, we broke down the strategies of each of the final four players and what their odds were of winning.

The pole vaulter may be new to the Survivor experience, but Liz Parnov has managed to get very far in the game. The retired athlete started off in the 'Villains' tribe on the reality TV show, and used her alliance with co-stars George Mladenov and Shonee Bowtell to her advantage to stay safe at each tribal council. According to betting agency Sportsbet, Parnov is the hot favourite to win Australian Survivor: Heroes vs Villains, with her odds of victory sitting at $1.27.

This is George Mladenov's second time in the game, after finishing as runner-up against Hayley Leake in the Brains vs Brawns season. The political staffer has returned to the series this year with a fresh strategy after learning from his past mistakes, and it's worked in his favour as he's in the final four. While Mladenov doesn't necessarily ace the phyiscal challenges, his social game is second to none and has got him this far. Bookies have predicted he'll come second, with odds sitting at $6.

Tying with Mladenov at $6 odds is lifeguard Matt Sharp. He's another newcomer to the competitive series, and has used a combination of physical strength and social strategy to further himself in the competition. One of Sharp's biggest strategies so far has been aligning himself with Mladenov, but some people have criticised him for not making his own moves and lurking in his co-star's shadow.

If Mladenov has a right-hand man in this game, it would have to be Gerry Geltch. The 62-year-old has defied ageist stereotypes in the competition, managing to fare impressively in many challenges, while keeping himself close to his "mentor" and friend, Mladenov. Similar to Sharp, his 'resume' on the show doesn't involve as much risk-taking as Parnov and Mladenov, and the bookies have accordingly ranked him last in terms of chances of winning – sitting at $13.

Of course, it's still very much anyone's game at this point, and it's only when the final challenge and jury verdicts are delivered that we will actually know the winner of Australian Survivor: Heroes vs Villains. Here's hoping each of the contenders has their game faces and pitches ready to go.

The Australian Survivor: Heroes vs Villains finale airs on Monday, March 27 at 7:30pm on Channel 10 and 10 Play.