Trigger Warning: This article contains mention of death.
Sonja Christopher has died at the age of 87. She was the first person to be voted off the island on Survivor. According to a statement from sources, she passed away on Friday but no additional information regarding her death has been released.
How Sonja Christopher gained her dubious distinction after Survivor in 2000
Christopher gained recognition as participant number one during the 2000s groundbreaking reality show Survivor: Borneo. At 63 years old when she competed, this made her loved by fans all over the world who watched how hard she fought through many obstacles.
One moment that will always stick out with people about Sonja’s time there was when she sang Bye Bye Blues to boost tribe morale. However, Richard Hatch became the eventual winner as she was voted out by the Tribal Council. It marked her as the very first one ever to get snuffed by the host Jeff Probst in Survivor history.
Survivor players shared tributes to her after the announcement of her death
The official Survivor account on Instagram shared Jeff Probst’s condolences in the caption, “Sonya was one of the kindest people to ever play Survivor. Every interaction I had with her over the years was lovely. She would always greet you with a smile on her face and joy in her heart. I’m honored that our paths got to cross.”
Similarly, Survivor season 46 participant, Liz Wilcox took to X to pay tribute to Sonja saying, “She had so much spunk + love for Survivor and what the show brought to her life. I hope you’re singing + playing your heart out somewhere beautiful, Sonja.”
In an interview conducted after her elimination from competition days earlier, Christopher reflected back upon what had happened throughout those grueling weeks spent living among strangers vying desperately for limited resources. She had survived breast cancer three years before competing on the renowned show, Survivor.
Sonja Christopher revealed, “I may have the dubious distinction of being the first person ever voted off Survivor, but I have not missed one episode watching it in the past 17 years,” in a video that surfaced on social media in 2017. Survivor’s first voted-out castaway will forever hold a special place in fans’ hearts.
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