As the torches flickered and “Survivor” host Jeff Probst read the final votes last year, most finalists and viewers reflected on the alliances and strategy that carried them to the end.
But for Sophi Balerdi, then a 27-year-old cellphone repair woman and contestant from South Miami, the moment meant something different. She thought of family and resilience, knowing her grandmother, who had died battling dementia four years before, was watching over her, cheering her every step.
“When I was out there, I had never felt closer to her since she was alive,” Balerdi recalled. “I definitely think it was something I had to do, and it was meant to happen for me. I just felt her presence a lot out there.”
For the past 25 years, CBS has been sending groups of more than a dozen people to remote islands with no food or shelter. They endure a series of challenges that test their physical, mental and social capabilities under pressure. Tribes that lose the challenges need to vote one of their contestants off the island every three days, and the last survivor gets rewarded with $1 million.
Balerdi, who was season 49’s runner-up, caught viewers’ attention with her empathetic strategy, an approach she carries in all her relationships.
As one of four siblings raised by immigrant parents, she has always considered her family in every decision she makes. Going on “Survivor” was one she made for herself.
“[My parents] didn’t want me to do it because they were scared,” Balerdi expressed. “They worry because they’ve been through so much. They expect the worst. [“Survivor”] was the first time I ever put myself first.”
She received a letter from home during filming. It was filled with her family’s encouragement, including a message from her younger sister Gaby: “Don’t count yourself out.”
“The family letters were the best day of the game for me,” Balerdi shared. “So before every challenge moving forward, I would read it. It gives you the fuel that food can’t give you.”
Balerdi’s parents immigrated from Cuba and Venezuela in the ‘50s to give their children a chance at the American dream. Roughly 10% of contestants have been Hispanic/Latino in all 50 seasons, a few of them playing more than once.
Her connection to the show started at 7 years old, long before she stepped onto the Mamanuca Islands of Fiji for “Survivor 49.”
When her parents were at work, her grandmother, Lita, would pick her up from St. Thomas Episcopal Parish School and look after her. In 2006, she came home and the second episode of “Survivor: China” (Season 15) was playing. Lita watched the show to practice her English.
Balerdi’s first memory of the show is her grandmother calling her over to show her how handsome Jeff Probst was.
“I was so young, I probably didn’t really understand what was going on,” Balerdi said.
“I just kept watching with her until the day she died.”
When Balerdi turned 18, she applied eight years in a row to appear on the show.
She nearly got cast for “Edge of Extinction” (Season 38) in 2019. After Lita passed away in 2020, Balerdi continued to apply. She made it onto “Survivor 49” in 2025.
Making it to the final three was no easy feat. She started on the Kele tribe that had a rocky start. They lost the first five immunity challenges in a row and were left with just two members on the tribe, one being Sophi.
Life on the island meant exhaustion, hunger, and strategic planning 24/7. Balerdi did not
eat for twelve days before winning a reward challenge.
“I would probably sleep one, maybe two, hours at a time before I would wake up from a crab crawling on my foot or the ocean coming up and wetting me,” Balerdi said.
After enduring the many obstacles and ending in a 5-2-1 vote, she finished the season in second place.
Her grit and ability to form connections worked to her advantage. Her life-long best friend, Katerina Quintairos, saw these qualities before she went to the island.
“She has this ability to make friends with anybody,” Quintairos said. “She genuinely cares about people and wants to learn about [them].”
Even after years of friendship, Balerdi’s gratitude reminds Quintairos how special she is, like when she asked if she was sad about placing second during the season 49 finale premiere in Los Angeles.
“She was like, ‘I’m so happy [and] grateful to be here,’” Quintairos said. “You would think that she won the million from how joyful she was.”
Fans of the show noticed the connection-driven qualities in Balerdi while the season unfolded. Miami native Audrey Simon started watching the show with her father at 10 years old.
Simon said Balerdi became one of her favorites on “Survivor 49.”
“You could tell she had pure intentions and played with her heart,” she said. “She didn’t have any other agenda and wasn’t trying to get famous. She was just being herself.”
Balerdi’s authenticity resonated with fans who saw themselves reflected in her story, including Katherine Zamora, a long-time fan from Fort Lauderdale.
“Watching Sophi Balerdi [place second] takes me back to that little girl that watched ‘Survivor’ in the living room with her parents, thinking ‘If they can do it, so can I,’” Zamora said. “In a political climate where Hispanics are scared to be seen, representation is everything.”
For Balerdi, the experience was more than outwitting, outplaying, and outlasting her opponents. Her immigrant parents made sacrifices to give their children a
future, and she did not take it for granted.
“I would pray a lot… I would try to talk to [my grandmother],” she said. “It was such an incredible experience for that reason, and that’s why I think not winning is not so bad for me, because that was so priceless. I got to connect with her out there.”
