Tony Vlachos

Vlachos was born on September 10, 1973, the son of Greek immigrants. He grew up in Jersey City, New Jersey, idolizing law enforcement officers and dreamed of one day becoming one. He graduated high school in 1992, and spent several years working in various different jobs while "partying" with his friends and working on his automobiles. He states that despite this recreational period in his life, he did not smoke, drink alcohol, or do drugs.

He began bodybuilding when he was 20, an activity with which he says he was "obsessed". He began working out in his basement with plastic weights filled with sand, and graduated to iron weights in about a year. In 2000, Vlachos became a Jersey City police officer.{{cite web|url=http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2014/02/jersey_city_patrolman_survivor.html|title=From Jersey City streets to 'Survivor' jungle a culture shock, contestant says|first=Mike|last=D'Onofrio|work=The Star-Ledger|date=February 25, 2014|access-date=May 22, 2014}} On February 5, 2014, he saved a 69-year-old man who had a heart attack on his lawn in nine inches of snow.{{cite web|url=http://www.nj.com/hudson/index.ssf/2014/05/post_516.html|title=Jersey City police officer on 'Survivor Cagayan' lauded for saving neighbor's life|first=Michaelangelo|last=Conte|work=The Star-Ledger|date=May 19, 2014|access-date=May 22, 2014}}

In 2007, Vlachos began dating a fellow police officer named Marissa Ann. They dated for approximately three years before he proposed to her on July 24, 2010. They married on June 2, 2012, and their daughter, Anastasia Marie, was born on February 16, 2013, five months before Vlachos left to film Survivor: Cagayan. Two months after arriving home, Vlachos and Marissa discovered she was two months pregnant with their second child, a son they named Constantine Anthony, who was born on June 9, 2014.Helling, Steve (June 10, 2014). [http://celebritybabies.people.com/2014/06/10/survivor-tony-vlachos-welcomes-son-constantine-anthony/ "Tony Vlachos Welcomes Son Constantine Anthony"]. People.

As of 2019, Vlachos is a resident of Allendale, New Jersey.{{cite web|url=https://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/cast/216316/|title= Anthony (Tony) Vlachos: Cast Member of Survivor: Winners at War|publisher=CBS|year=2019|access-date=June 14, 2020|archive-date=January 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200115195620/https://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/cast/216316/}}

Vlachos was cast on the 28th season of the reality television show Survivor, Survivor: Cagayan. The theme of the season was "Brawn vs. Brains vs. Beauty", with participants split into three tribes based on these features. Vlachos was cast on the Aparri "brawn" tribe. Before the first tribal swap, Aparri dominated the immunity challenges and did not go to tribal council. During this time, Vlachos formed an alliance, dubbed "Cops-R-Us", with fellow police officer Sarah Lacina. Despite this alliance, Vlachos lied to Lacina about his profession, claiming he was a construction worker. Vlachos also became close with Trish Hegarty and was wary of the popularity of former NBA All-Star Clifford Robinson. Vlachos was able to find the Aparri tribe's hidden immunity idol with help of the clue he found in the reward they received after winning a challenge.{{cite episode|title=Hot Girl with a Grudge|series=Survivor: Cagayan|season=28|number=1|airdate=February 26, 2014|network=CBS}} At the final tribal council, the jury ultimately chose him as the winner with a vote of 8–1, beating martial arts instructor Woo Hwang.{{cite web|author=Nordyke, Kimberly|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/survivor-cagayan-winner-reveals-plans-706423|title='Survivor: Cagayan' Winner Reveals Plans for $1M Prize; Burning Questions Answered|magazine=The Hollywood Reporter|date=May 21, 2014|access-date=June 27, 2020|archive-date=May 26, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140526231457/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/survivor-cagayan-winner-reveals-plans-706423}}

In a 2015 interview, host Jeff Probst listed Vlachos as one of his top 10 favorite Survivor winners ever, and one of his top 6 favorite male winners, commenting, "I like Tony because he's unlike any winner we've ever had. He's the Tasmanian Devil. He played an incredibly reckless game, but he was so gifted that he could make a mistake and recover because he was lapping you so that he was able to actually catch back up and fix his mistake. It's almost like he had his own time machine. I've never seen anyone play with that much energy and juggle that many balls at once, and pull it all off." In 2016, Vlachos became a part of the Survivor Hall of Fame, along with Tina Wesson and Rupert Boneham.{{Cite web|url=https://my.xfinity.com/ed/tv/2016/11/28/cast-vote-2016-survivor-hall-fame/|title=Meet the 'Survivor' Hall of Fame's Class of 2016 |publisher=Xfinity TV|access-date=May 27, 2020|author=Holmes, Gordon|date=November 28, 2016}} In March 2020, Briana Kranich, writing for Screen Rant, ranked Survivor: Cagayan the best season of Survivor.{{Cite web |date=March 26, 2020 |title=Survivor: The 10 Best Seasons, Ranked |url=https://screenrant.com/survivor-micronesia-cagayan-best-seasons-ranked/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200628015528/https://screenrant.com/survivor-micronesia-cagayan-best-seasons-ranked/ |archive-date=June 28, 2020 |access-date=June 27, 2020 |website=ScreenRant}}

At the end of the reunion show for the 33rd season, Survivor: Millennials vs. Gen X, Vlachos was confirmed to be a participant in the 34th season: Survivor: Game Changers.Dehnart, Andy. (May 21, 2016).[https://www.realityblurred.com/realitytv/2016/05/survivor-34-cast-all-stars/ "Survivor 34 cast identified; chaotic casting changes its twist"]. Reality Blurred. Vlachos' strategy for this series was wildly unpredictable, beginning his search for idols immediately after arriving at the beach in full view of his tribemates, framing others by planting an idol in someone else's belongings, and feigning an intimate personal bond with multiple tribe members. Dalton Ross, writing for Entertainment Weekly, called this strategy "one of the most aggressive games ever."{{cite web|author=Ross, Dalton|url=https://ew.com/tv/2020/01/28/survivor-tony-vlachos-winners-at-war-interview/|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|title=Tony Vlachos on why 'losing helped me' for Survivor: Winners at War|date=January 28, 2020|access-date=June 27, 2020|archive-date=January 28, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200128203707/https://ew.com/tv/2020/01/28/survivor-tony-vlachos-winners-at-war-interview/}} However, when he informed Diaz-Twine about his spy bunker, she informed other tribe members, and ultimately campaigned to have him voted out. Despite this, Vlachos later stated in an interview with CBS that because she was voted out after him, the two of them became friends during the considerable time they spent on the pre-jury trip to Vietnam. In a January 2020 interview, he stated that losing Game Changers helped prepare him for Winners at War.

During the promotional trailer for the season during the reunion show for the 39th season, Survivor: Island of the Idols, Vlachos was confirmed to be a participant in the 40th season: Survivor: Winners at War.{{Cite magazine|url=https://ew.com/tv/survivor-winners-at-war-season-40-cast/|title=Meet the cast of 'Survivor: Winners at War'|magazine=Entertainment Weekly|access-date=May 27, 2020|author=Ross, Dalton|date=December 18, 2019}} Vlachos started on the Dakal tribe.{{Cite web|title=Survivor: Tony Vlachos Reminds Fans Why He's the Best|url=https://screenrant.com/survivor-tony-vlachos-season-40-winners-at-war-ladder/|date=February 21, 2020|website=Screen Rant|access-date=May 27, 2020|author=Fedich, Justin}}{{Cite web|title=Survivor: Winners At War Episode 2 – 'Tony's Ladder'|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XXaoW68l6to|date=February 21, 2020|via=YouTube|access-date=May 5, 2020}} Vlachos adapted his style to approach the season with a gameplay distinct from his Cagayan strategy, which involved an alliance with fellow police officer Sarah Lacina, surveillance from a spy nest, and maintaining his threat level by staying calm for a good portion of the game and orchestrating attacks upon lower-threat targets.{{cite web|url=https://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/news/1009822/survivor-season-40-winner-tony-vlachos-has-nothing-left-to-prove/|title= Survivor Season 40 Winner Tony Vlachos Has Nothing Left To Prove |publisher=CBS|date=May 14, 2020|access-date=June 27, 2020|archive-date=June 28, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200628020150/https://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/news/1009822/survivor-season-40-winner-tony-vlachos-has-nothing-left-to-prove/}}Later in the game, he became a power player, taking control and eliminating anyone who got in his way or plotted against him, but he managed to stay in the game and not receive any votes against him due to his strong allegiances with Lacina and Ben Driebergen, and winning four individual immunity challenges. On night 38, he beat Lacina in the Fire-making a tiebreaker to make it back to the Final Tribal Council. He was praised for his control of the game and likability at the Final Tribal Council. He ultimately became the second two-time winner (after Sandra) after receiving 12 of the 16 jury votes.{{cite web|author=Caruso, Nick|url=https://tvline.com/2020/05/14/survivor-tony-vlachos-season-40-interview-winners-at-war/|publisher=TVLine|date=May 14, 2020|title=Survivor{{'}}s Tony Vlachos on His Hardest Winners at War Moment: 'I Was Crushed, It Was Just Raw Emotion'|access-date=June 1, 2020|archive-date=May 15, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200515151651/https://tvline.com/2020/05/14/survivor-tony-vlachos-season-40-interview-winners-at-war/}}{{Cite web|title=Jersey City cop wins $2 million in all-star Season 40 of 'Survivor'|url=https://nypost.com/2020/05/14/jersey-city-cop-wins-2-million-in-all-star-season-40-of-survivor/|last=Hobbs|first=Jack|date=May 14, 2020|website=New York Post|access-date=2020-05-14}}Benutty, John; Dixon, Marucs James (May 13, 2020). [https://www.goldderby.com/article/2020/survivor-40-finale-recap-who-won-winners-at-war/ "'Survivor' 40 finale recap: Who won 'Winners at War' — Ben, Denise, Michele, Sarah, Tony or Edge of Extinction returnee?"] GoldDerby.

In 2025, Vlachos is set to appear on Survivor: Australia v The World.{{cite web|url=https://tvtonight.com.au/2024/09/2025-upfronts-network-10-big-brother-sam-pang-ghosts-australia.html|title=2025 Upfronts: Network 10: Big Brother, Sam Pang, Ghosts Australia.|last=Knox|first=David|website=TV Tonight|date=16 September 2024|access-date=16 September 2024}}

{{reflist}}

• [http://www.cbs.com/shows/survivor/cast/214798/ "Tony Vlachos"]. Survivor: Cagayan. CBS.
• Longeretta, Emily (May 21, 2014). [http://hollywoodlife.com/2014/05/21/survivor-winner-tony-vlachos-wins-cagayan-season-28-finale/ "'Survivor: Cagayan' Recap: (Spoiler) Wins It All After Dramatic Finale"]. Hollywood Life.

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{{succession box | title= Winner of Survivor | before=Tyson Apostol| years=Survivor: Cagayan| after={{nowrap|Natalie Anderson}}}}

{{succession box | title= Winner of Survivor | before=Tommy Sheehan| years=Survivor: Winners at War| after=Erika Casupanan}}

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{{Survivor contestants}}

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Category:Survivor (American TV series) winners

Category:1973 births

Category:Living people

Category:Law enforcement officials from New Jersey

Category:Participants in American reality television series

Category:Participants in Australian reality television series

Category:People from Allendale, New Jersey

Category:People from Jersey City, New Jersey

Category:American municipal police officers

Category:American people of Greek descent

Category:Survivor (franchise) winners