Who Is Victoria Baamonde? New Details On The 'Survivor: Edge Of Extinction' Finalist And How She Could Win It
Victoria Baamonde is a finalist on Survivor. Does she have what it takes ot win it all?
Instagram The finale of Survivor: Island of Extinction aired on May 15, and millions tuned in to see which of the finalists would walk away with the prize. One fan favorite was Victoria Baamonde, a New York native who was vying for the million-dollar prize. Baamonde admitted early on the wilderness isn’t her natural habitat, though she does enjoy being outdoors. But she told audiences that she would be good for comic relief and her experience coming from a big family put her in a good place for dealing with the group dynamic on the island. Who is Victoria Baamonde and did she win it all on the latest season of Survivor? Read on for all the details.
1. Animal lover
In her official Survivor bio, Baamode lists an unusual inspiration: one of her pet brine pigs. She said: “This is going to sound nuts, but my guinea pig Scamp. She's been sick from the moment I got her. She's had two surgery stints, countless vet visits, and tons of medications, but she's still the happiest, feistiest, and most amazing little fur-ball. She has such a distinct personality and loves eating so much. I just respect that about her and strive to be that simplistically happy.” She has a second guinea pig as well named Peeve. She jokes that Pevve is her “pet peeve.” Her Instagram page features plenty of pictures of her with different animals and her bio even says:“They say having a dog increases your life span. if that's true I'm gonna live for fucking ever.”
Baamonde loves her pet guinea pigs.
2. Smart
Baamonde may be gorgeous but she isn’t just a pretty face. She had a 4.0 GPA in college at Hunter College in New York City and graduated first in her class. She says: “I bring it up in conversation as much as possible.”
3. Outdoors
Though she was born and raised in the Bronx, New York, Baalmonde says she loves hiking. An affinity for the outdoors is a must-have for Survivor contestants who need to get through the challenges of living off the grid for the duration of the contest, though Baamonde admitted to some shortcomings in that area early on.
She's not great at starting fires.
4. Winning attitude
Baamonde didn’t come to Survivor from a place of ignorance. She says she’s been watching the show for years and has a good sense of what it takes to win. She told CBS: “I truly think I have everything it takes to outwit, outplay, and outlast. I am and always have been a hustler. I work hard to achieve my goals. I'm sociable, very smart, strong, and self-aware enough to know when to tone down the quantities that make me a threat. I'm not afraid to lie and backstab, but I'm smart enough to know without alliances and bonds, you will never win.”
5. Sole Survivor (Spoilers!)
Despite making it to the final five on Survivor: Edge of Extinction, Baamonde was passed over for the final prize by someone who was the third person voted off the island. Chris Underwood was only in the game for 13 days before being sent to Edge of Extinction, where he spent the remainder of the series building relationships and manipulating the circumstances to get himself back into the final. When he made it back into the game, People reports that he made some serious moves: “I had to play the biggest possible game with three days that I could possibly play,” he said at the Final Tribal Council. “So I flushed an idol on my first vote, played an idol correctly my second vote, won an immunity challenge on the final day, and then biggest move of the game by far, give up my necklace to earn my spot back into the game by making fire against the number one competitor in the entire season. And that’s the best that I could possibly do. There was no other scenario.” His victory wasn’t greeted with universal acclaim, however. Contestant Gavin argued in the final jury: “If you’re going to talk about classic Survivor, it’s about surviving 39 days. It’s not getting voted out on day eight, then coming back on day 35 and having a chance to win this game.”
Underwood came back after being voted off.
6. After Survivor
Though she didn’t win the show, Baamonde is back home and making the best of life with her beloved pets and her work as a server in New York restaurants. She took to Instagram to thank her fans just before the finale aired and she added the hashtag Suvivor4Lyf.
Baamonde thanks her fans.
Rebekah Kuschmider has been writing about celebrities, pop culture, entertainment, and politics since 2010. Her work has been seen at Ravishly, Babble, Scary Mommy, The Mid, Redbook online, and The Broad Side. She is the creator of the blog Stay at Home Pundit and she is a cohost of the weekly podcast The More Perfect Union.