''Gladiators'' was an Australian television series which aired on the

Seven Network The Seven Network (commonly known as Channel Seven or simply Seven) is a major Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by Seven West Media Limited, and is one of five main free-to-air television networks in Australia ...

in 2008. It was a revival of the earlier series of the same name, and was based on the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

version of the show, which was also revived in 2008. The show was filmed at The Dome at the Sydney Showground, and was hosted by Tom Williams and

Zoe Naylor Zoe Naylor (born 4 July 1977) is an Australian actress, journalist and television presenter. Early life and education Naylor was born in Sydney, Australia to Richard Naylor, a veterinarian, and Neroli, an English and History teacher. She gradu ...

. Well known NRL referee Bill Harrigan was one of the two referees for the show, the other was John Forsythe, who was a referee on the original series. Although not credited, the Sydney Altitude Cheerleaders were present in every episode, doing various routines throughout each episode whether an event was taking place or not. Behind the scenes, highly respected military fitness expert 'Chief' Brabon (head strength & conditioning coach) was responsible for preparing the gladiators for their extremely physical roles. The revival of ''Gladiators'' was first announced on 9 September 2007, and premiered on 30 March 2008 at 6:30 pm. The Challengers in this series competed to win A$50,000 and a new

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. The revival aired for one season. No official announcement has been made by the Seven Network as per the future plans for the series.

Selection

To ensure that both Gladiators, and Challengers were of the highest possible calibre, all prospects were submitted to a grueling physical selection process designed by the shows head strength & conditioning coach 'Chief' Brabon. The so-called 'Barrier Test' was based on similar selection programs that Chief had designed for elite military and law enforcement tactical response teams. The barrier test was so successful at vetting would-be Gladiators & Challengers that less than 10% of applicants successfully completed the first event known as the Grunt Challenge. The challenge required participants to do a burpee style exercise (Grunts) to a cadence called by Chief himself. Prospective Challengers were required to complete a minimum of 75 Grunts to pass through to the next event, whereas Gladiators were required to complete 100 Grunts.

Results

''Note: Challengers which are bolded advanced through to the next stage. Times listed next to the challengers' name is their runtime for the Eliminator. DNR indicates the challenger did not run the Eliminator due to the other challenger pulling out from injury.''

Men

The eventual winner of the Grand Final was Paul Baird.

Women

Winner of the Grand Final was Natasha Haines.

Episodes

Gladiators

Male

* Hunter - Zac Kozyrski * Kouta -

Anthony Koutoufides Anthony Koutoufides (born 18 January 1973), also known by his nickname of Kouta, is a retired Australian rules footballer with the Carlton Football Club. Considered by many as one of the most powerful and athletic players of all-time, he played ...

* Nomad - Ali Ahmadi * Outlaw -

Jackson Mullane Jackson Mullane (born 30 January 1987) is an Australian composer, film director, screenwriter and actor. He was made popular by his portrayal of Outlaw in the television series Australian Gladiators. Mullane was also a Representative rugby union ...

* Scar - Michael Gore * Tank - Bobby Tuimaualuga * Thunder -

Derek Boyer Derek Boyer (born 14 June 1969) is a Fijian-Australian world champion powerlifter, former professional strongman competitor and actor. Strongman and powerlifting Boyer has competed seven times in the World' ...

Female

* Amazon - Shari Onley * Angel - Tiffiny Hall * Bionica - Stephanie Lethborg * Destiny - Karen Harding * Nitro -

Hayley Bateup Hayley Bateup (born 9 January 1980 in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia) is an Australian professional ironwoman, surf life saver and model. She has won The Coolangatta Gold three times. Bateup appeared on the 2008 series of Australian Gladiato ...

* Olympia - Tatiana Grigorieva * Viper - Sarah Howett

Events

* Atlasphere * Duel * Gauntlet * Hang Tough * Hit & Run * Pendulum * Powerball * Pyramid * Sumo Ball * Suspension Bridge * The Wall * Vertigo * Whiplash * Eliminator

Development

In early 2007, an episode of the television series '' Where Are They Now?'' featured some of the original Gladiators as special guests. The Seven Network used this segment as research towards reviving the show depending on viewer numbers for the episode as well as if the ratings fell after the end of the segment. On 9 September 2007, it was officially announced by Seven that the show was being revived and will return for its fourth series in early 2008. Auditions for new gladiators took place via e-mail and closed on 16 October 2007 while auditions for challengers took place in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, Sydney,

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

and

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

from 20 October to 4 November 2007. Once the gladiators and challengers had been chosen, filming of all the episodes for season four took place from 6 January 2008 to 10 February 2008 at The Dome, Sydney Showground,

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. Speculation around who was going to host the new series was evident, with many reports in the media about celebrities which have either successfully or unsuccessfully auditioned.

presenter Tom Williams was reportedly the only male who was auditioned, and was picked up for the male co-host role immediately. For the female co-host role, the process was more intense, with many females auditioning, including swimmers

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and

Brooke Hanson Brooke Louise Hanson, OAM (born 18 March 1978) is an Australian former competitive swimmer, Olympic gold medallist, world champion, and former world record-holder. Career A swimmer since the age of four, Hanson was the youngest swimmer on t ...

as well as actors Zoe Ventoura and Samantha Noble. On 18 December 2007, it was reported in the media that former ''

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'' actor

was being seriously considered as the female host, with an insider stating that "She looked amazing in the screen tests and there was a great vibe between her and Tom. She's fresh and fun." She ultimately ended up being chosen for the female co-host position. With new Gladiators being chosen for the new series, it was reported on 30 December 2007 that former Australian rules footballer

and

Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...

Pole vault Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Myc ...

er Tatiana Grigorieva were two of the new gladiators for the new series, but the

refused to confirm the selections, even though these reports ended up being true. Strongman

is the third celebrity to be picked up as a Gladiator, followed by former ironwoman

being the fourth. The other ten Gladiators have a non-public background.

Ratings

; Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Gladiators (2008 Australian Tv Series) 2008 Australian television series debuts 2008 Australian television series endings 2000s Australian game shows Australian television series based on American television series English-language television shows Gladiators (franchise) Seven Network original programming Television series by Banijay Television series by Endemol Australia Television series reboots Television shows set in New South Wales