Survivor season 43 contestant Noelle Lambert was at an immediate disadvantage when it came to winning the million-dollar prize. However, her disadvantage was not that she had a prosthetic leg. It was that she was so inspirational, likable and respected, there is no way anyone would have beat her in the final vote. Therefore, anyone who would have allowed her to get to the final three would have been essentially throwing away their own chance to be crowned the Survivor season 43 winner.
The most wonderful person does not usually win a competitive reality show like Survivor. It is the contestant who is the best at manipulating people into thinking they are a wonderful person. Working people in a way that is necessary to get to the end of the game requires a player to keep their most powerful qualities hidden. Unfortunately, for Paralympian Noelle Lambert, her avid determination and strength of will were on display from the beginning, simply for the fact that she was playing Survivor as an amputee. Noelle lost her left leg in an accident six years ago. In an interview with Parade, Noelle revealed that one of the main reasons she chose to be on Survivor was that she wanted “to prove to people that people who have disabilities are not incapable of doing things.” The 25-year-old definitely accomplished that goal.
Noelle Lambert Is Already A Survivor Legend
In one of the most poignant moments of the season, Noelle achieved a huge come-from-behind victory in a reward challenge, where she struggled to maneuver across a balance beam. Survivor is known for its tough physical competitions, and this was definitely one of them. Noelle was visibly frustrated, but she never gave up. She finally made it across the beam and managed to land a bag on top of a high platform on her second try, beating everyone who had been far ahead of her in the challenge. While it was a highly inspirational victory, it also clued her competitors in that not only was Noelle a truly amazing individual, but she also had the ability to win physical competitions. After that, her co-stars simply couldn’t justify keeping her around any longer, and they voted her out at the next tribal council.
Viewers were understandably disappointed, as Noelle is the type of contestant fans can’t help but root for. However, at the same time, avid watchers of Survivor are well aware that keeping Noelle in the game would be an amateur move. The idea that any one of her competitors could have beat her in the final three, where the jury are in charge of the vote, seemed very unlikely. So, they did what they had to do, before it was too late. Essentially, the only way that Noelle had a chance to make it to the final three was if she won every immunity idol from the moment she won the reward. She was a mental, social and physical threat, meaning no one who wanted to take home a million dollars themselves would have ever taken her with them to the end.
Whereas as some Survivor players are able to hide how big of a threat they really are, Noelle was simply not in that position. Her formidability was clearly on display for everyone to see. So, although it is very disappointing that she is no longer a contender for the grand prize, it is certainly understandable that her competitors had little choice but to vote her out of the game.
Source: Parade