Advertisement
Following Kellie Nalbandian’s shocking elimination on November 15 and the subsequent blindside of Kendra McQuarrie on November 22, the Belo tribe dwindled down to its final three members: Katurah Topps, Bruce Perreault, and Jake O’Kane.
After nearly clinching victory in the Immunity Challenge and enjoying a reward at The Sanctuary alongside Julie Alley and Bruce Perreault, Kendra found herself advocating for either Dee Valladares or Jake O’Kane to be voted out during the pivotal tribal council. However, she was outwitted by her fellow castaways, facing a unanimous vote against her. Consequently, Kendra joined the jury, becoming the third member to reside at Ponderosa, joining Kellie Nalbandian and Kaleb Gebrewold.
Had she secured the Immunity Challenge win, Kendra might have altered her fate. Despite popular belief, the Colorado native faced adversity throughout the game.
Kendra’s struggle began with a hard fall on the balance beam during episode 2’s Reward/Immunity Challenge, resulting in an injury that caused discomfort in various activities—sitting, sleeping on bamboo, and competing in challenges. In an exclusive interview with Parade, Kendra revealed the nature of her injury, explaining she had a small fracture in her coccyx bone from the significant fall on the balance beam due to her height of 5’10”.
Reflecting on the injury, Kendra shared, “Your girl was hurting!” She elaborated on starting physical therapy recently and how the injury significantly impacted her Survivor journey. Despite trying not to dwell on the pain day-to-day, Kendra acknowledged that in hindsight, she unconsciously adjusted her movements during challenges to minimize discomfort. Despite temporarily forgetting her pain during challenges, Kendra faced significant soreness upon returning to camp.
Acknowledging the impact of her injury on her gameplay, Kendra revealed that she often had to take moments alone to cope with the pain. She mentioned blacking out during challenges and feeling extremely sore afterward.
Despite her early departure from Survivor, Kendra’s resilience earned admiration. Well wishes for her speedy recovery poured in as viewers expressed missing her presence on the show.
As Survivor 45 continues, viewers can catch 90-minute episodes of the gripping competition series every Wednesday at 8 pm ET/PT on CBS.