Alex Silvagni’s The Summit Australia 2023 journey came to an end on May 30; however, there was a reason he went as far as he did.
While some of the other Trekkers were vocal from the beginning, the former AFL player chose to play as “Switzerland”, a strategy he learned to adapt pretty quickly.
“I didn’t want to be to one side or the other,” Silvagni said in an interview with Mediaweek prior to his elimination. “It even was a part of voting for Josh [Waldhorn]. I thought, okay, where are the masses voting? It might’ve been a cop out but I needed to go with that because I’d put a target on my back if I’m opposed to the others and then [I chose to] sit in the middle and be that Switzerland so you’re not sticking out like a sore thumb and putting a target on your back.”
Given that this is the premiere season of the series, there was no “reference point” for the contestants to off.
“You watch reality shows that have had seasons before them like Survivor and you’ve got a reference point and you know what you need to do in terms of strategies, voting and everything else. But something like this flagship series, I had absolutely no idea what was going to go on here. We just had to be nimble and come up with something on the fly.”
Alex Silvagni. Nine
Alex Silvagni believes the “capable young ones” shot themselves in the foot
Controversial Trekkers Sam Molineaux and Jans Andrea were among a small clique that named themselves the “capable young ones” which Silvagni believes has been their downfall.
“You need to not put people offside,” he said. “There’s no point in point in ranting and raving and everything else. It’s not going to move people quickly. You’re just gonna get eliminated very quickly to be honest.”
He then lamented: “That gameplay was really difficult at the end of the day, you’d be so exhausted from having to strategise the whole day and thinking about what’s next. The physical element was tough, but it wasn’t as tough as the social aspect.”
As for his team-inspired gameplay, which stemmed from the AFL field, seeing climbers succeed as far as he saw was “rewarding”.
“You want to see people achieve and people break through those barriers and we saw that which is quite rewarding,” he said. “But then it got to the pointy end and I had an idea of who I wanted to get up with and unfortunately, it didn’t pan out that way, but I was grateful for the experience.”
The Summit cast. Nine
“It was epic. It was just so surreal. The scenery was just absolutely remarkable. So many moving parts and so many obstacles, twists and turns.”
When asked what was more difficult, playing at a National level for the AFL or competing on The Summit, Silvagni revealed they were both as challenging as each other.
“When you’re playing Buddy Franklin in a Grand Final, it’s a packed stadium full of Sydney supporters. It can be a lonely place,” he admitted. “And then you get towards the end of The Summit and you have the same sort of feeling. It’s a lonely place when you get voted off. You’re surrounded by who you thought were allies.”
The Summit Finale airs on Sunday, June 4 at 7.30 pm on 9 and 9Now.