The Amazing Race Australia | |
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![]() Title card since season 4 | |
Also known as | The Amazing Race Australia: Celebrity Edition |
Genre | Reality competition |
Created by | Elise Doganieri Bertram van Munster |
Based on | |
Presented by | |
Starring | The Amazing Race Australia contestants |
Theme music composer | John M. Keane |
Country of origin | Australia |
Original language | English |
No. of seasons | 8 |
No. of episodes | 113 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Producers |
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Production location | See below |
Cinematography | Ryan Godard |
Camera setup | Multi-camera |
Running time | 47—68 minutes |
Production companies |
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Original release | |
Network |
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Release | 16 May 2011 – 25 September 2014 |
Network | Network 10 |
Release | 28 October 2019 – present |
Related | |
International versions |
The Amazing Race Australia (also known as The Amazing Race Australia: Celebrity Edition) is an Australian adventure reality competition show based on the American series The Amazing Race . Following the premise of other versions in the Amazing Race franchise, the show follows teams of two as they race around the world. Each season is split into legs, with teams tasked to deduce clues, navigate themselves in foreign areas, interact with locals, perform physical and mental challenges, and travel by air, boat, car, taxi, and other modes of transport. Teams are progressively eliminated at the end of most legs for being the last to arrive at designated Pit Stops. The first team to arrive at the Finish Line wins a grand prize of A$250,000.
The series was first aired on the Seven Network, who purchased the format rights to produce an Australian version in 2010 and (as of 2023) hold the Australian broadcast rights to the American version. [1] The first two editions of the show aired in 2011 and 2012 were produced by activeTV, which also produced the Asian and Israeli versions of The Amazing Race, in association with ABC Studios. Following a hiatus in 2013, a third season titled The Amazing Race Australia v New Zealand , which included New Zealand teams, aired in 2014 and was produced in-house by the network's own Seven Productions. The show aired in New Zealand on TV2. The host for Seven's iteration the show was actor Grant Bowler. [2] Seven's iteration of the show was not renewed for a fourth season.
In June 2019, it was announced the series would be revived by Network 10. 10's iteration of the show is produced by Eureka Productions and hosted by former rugby league footballer Beau Ryan. The first edition of 10's iteration, and the fourth season overall, aired in late 2019. [3] [4] 10's second and the fifth season overall aired in 2021 and was set in Australia, following international travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [5] 10's third and the sixth season overall aired in 2022 and returned to the regular global travel format. [6] [7] On 28 April 2023, the show was renewed for a seventh season featuring celebrity contestants racing for a prize for their chosen charity. [8] [9] On 24 October 2023, the show was renewed for a second celebrity season airing in late 2024. [10] A third celebrity edition was officially announced on 28 January 2025. [11]
The Amazing Race Australia is a reality television competition between teams of two in a race around the world. Each season is divided into a number of legs wherein teams travel and complete various tasks to obtain clues to help them progress to a Pit Stop where teams are given a chance to rest and recover before starting the next leg. The first team to arrive at a Pit Stop is often awarded a small prize while the last team is normally eliminated (except in non-elimination legs, where the last team to arrive may be penalised in the following leg). The final leg is run by the last three remaining teams, and the first to arrive at the final destination wins the A$250,000 cash prize (or an A$100,000 charity prize for the Celebrity Editions).
Each team is composed of two individuals who have some type of relationship to each other. A total of 202 participants have joined The Amazing Race Australia.
Route Markers are yellow and red flags that mark the places where teams must go. Most Route Markers are attached to the boxes that contain clue envelopes, but some may mark the place where the teams must go in order to complete tasks, or may be used to line a course that the teams must follow.
Route markers were, however, coloured yellow and green in the second leg of the inaugural season to avoid confusion with the flag of South Vietnam. The route markers were not changed for a visit to Vietnam during the 4th season.
Clues are found throughout the competition in sealed envelopes, normally inside clue boxes. They give teams the information they need and tasks they need to do in order for them to progress.
During the race, teams may face the following which may potentially slow them down:
At the beginning of each leg, teams receive an allowance of cash, typically in Australian dollars, to cover expenses during the competition (except for the purchase of airline tickets, which are paid for by credit cards provided by the show).
Teams then have to follow clues and Route Markers that will lead them to the various destinations and tasks they will face. Modes of travel between these destinations include commercial and chartered aeroplanes, boats, trains, taxis, buses, and rented vehicles provided by the show, or the teams may simply travel by foot. Each leg ends with a Pit Stop where teams are able to rest and where teams that arrives last are progressively eliminated until only three teams remain. Most legs comprise three or more challenges, often a Roadblock, Detour and a Route Info task. The first teams to arrive at the Pit Stop win prizes, usually from the show's sponsors.
Occasionally, the first arriving team will win an advantage in the game.
Each season has a number of predetermined non-elimination legs, in which the last team to arrive at the Pit Stop is not eliminated and is allowed to continue on the competition. However, that team is penalised for the next leg
Marathon legs occur when teams are instructed to go to the next Pit Stop but actually must continue racing without a mandatory rest period. The clue to the Pit Stop says "Grant/Beau Awaits" with no mention of elimination. It occurred once every season for Seven's iteration of the series. This was later brought into Network 10's second season.
Most penalties are adapted from the American version but sometimes the show will use its own rules. The rules may vary between seasons of the show. Given the large difference in rules between the original Seven Network iterations (seasons 1–3) and the Network 10 iteration (season 4–present), the rules for both iterations are listed separately.
The first season premiered in May 2011 and ended in August 2011. The second season [14] premiered in May 2012 and ended in August 2012. The casting for a third season began in August 2012, however, it was notably absent when the network revealed its 2013 schedule in October. A 2013 edition of the show was replaced by an unsuccessful revival of The Mole . A new edition was launched in August 2014, involving teams from New Zealand and titled The Amazing Race Australia v New Zealand . [15]
In May 2019, a casting call for a new "Adventure Travel Competition" led to speculation that The Amazing Race Australia was being revived. At the time, the only information known about the series was that it would be produced by Eureka Productions and that, like the Australia v New Zealand edition, applications were open to Australian and New Zealand citizens and permanent residents. [16] In late May, it was reported by blog TVBlackbox that the casting call was indeed for an Amazing Race Australia revival with Network 10 commissioning the reboot. [17] In late June, Network 10 announced the revival of The Amazing Race Australia with a new season set to air in late 2019. [18]
No. [a] | Race Information | Winners | Host | Contestants | Additional Notes | |||||||
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Start Date | Starting Line | Finish Date | Finish Line | Distance | Countries | Legs | Teams | |||||
Seven Network Iteration (2011–2014) | ||||||||||||
1 | 5 November 2010 | Melbourne Cricket Ground , Melbourne, VIC | 29 November 2010 | Heirisson Island, Perth, WA | 50,000 km (31,000 mi) | 11 | 12 | 11 | Tyler Atkins & Nathan Joliffe | Grant Bowler | Civilian Edition | |
2 | 18 November 2011 | Royal Botanic Gardens, Sydney, NSW | 13 December 2011 | Lake McKenzie, Fraser Island, QLD | 65,000 km (40,000 mi) | 9 | Shane Haw & Andrew Thoday | Introduced Anonymous U-Turn, Yield, U-Turn Vote, and Salvage Pass | ||||
3 | 7 March 2014 | Uluru, Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park, NT | 30 March 2014 | Loch Ard Gorge, Port Campbell National Park, VIC | 90,000 km (56,000 mi) | 10 | 10 | 10 | Daniel Little & Ryan Thomas | Australia v New Zealand Featured 5 teams from Australia & 5 from New Zealand Introduced the Speed Bump penalty and second Express Pass | ||
Network 10 Iteration (2019–present) | ||||||||||||
4 | 20 August 2019 | Seoul Plaza, Seoul, South Korea | 12 September 2019 | Nitmiluk Gorge, Nitmiluk National Park, NT | 45,000 km (28,000 mi) | 8 | 12 | 11 | Tim & Rod Sattler-Jones | Beau Ryan | Civilian Edition | First season to start outside Australia |
5 | 6 October 2020 | Newell Beach, Newell, QLD | 14 November 2020 | Mount Kosciuszko, Kosciuszko National Park, NSW | 17,000 km (11,000 mi) | 1 | 24 | 16 [b] | Brendon Crawley & Jackson Dening | Season set entirely within Australia (due to COVID-19). Introduced the First Class Pass and Stowaway Teams. [c] | ||
6 | 5 March 2022 | Flemington Racecourse, Melbourne, VIC & Hickson Road Reserve, Sydney, NSW [d] | 16 April 2022 | Gantheaume Point, Broome, WA | 55,000 km (35,000 mi) | 7 | 21 | 20 | Heath Curry & Toni Hilland | Beau Ryan Scott Tweedie [e] | Introduced the split Starting Line. | |
7 | 8 June 2023 | Sunder Nursery, Delhi, India | 2 July 2023 | The River of Life Lookout, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | 10,000 km (6,200 mi) | 3 | 12 | 11 | Alli Simpson & Angie Simpson Darren McMullen & Tristan Dougan Emma Watkins & Hayley Watkins [f] | Beau Ryan | Celebrity Edition | Featured celebrities racing with their loved ones, competing for a prize for a chosen charity Season set in Asia First season to feature a finish line outside Australia |
8 | 7 May 2024 | Plaza de Mayo Buenos Aires, Argentina | 1 June 2024 | Hua Lamphong Railway Station Bangkok, Thailand | 25,000 km (15,500 mi) | 4 | Tai "Bam Bam" & Logan Tuivasa | Featured celebrities racing with their loved ones, competing for a prize for a chosen charity | ||||
9 | 2025 | TBA | 2025 | TBA | Featured celebrities racing with their loved ones, competing for a prize for a chosen charity |
Notes
No. | Network | Episodes | Timeslot | Premiere | Finale | Viewers | Average Rank | Ref | ||||||||
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Date | Viewers | Rank | Date | Viewers | Rank | |||||||||||
1 | Seven | 12 | Monday 8:30 p.m. | 16 May 2011 | 1,258,000 | #5 | 1 August 2011 | 1,195,000 | #6 | 1,125,000 | #7 | [19] [20] | ||||
2 | Wednesday 9:00 p.m. [a] [b] Monday 7:30 p.m. [a] [c] [d] | 30 May 2012 | 886,000 | #10 | 15 August 2012 | 976,000 | #8 | 905,000 | #10 | [21] [22] | ||||||
3 | Seven (AU) TV2 (NZ) | 10 | Monday 8:40 p.m. (AU) [e] [f] [g] Tuesday 8:30 p.m. (NZ) | 4 August 2014 (AU) 5 August 2014 (NZ) | 588,000 | #18 | 25 September 2014 (AU) 7 October 2014 (NZ) | 416,000 | #<20 | 607,000 | #16 | [23] [24] | ||||
4 | 10 | 12 | Monday & Tuesday 7:30 p.m. | 28 October 2019 | 716,000 | #8 | 3 December 2019 | 670,000 [h] 805,000 [h] | #7 #3 | 682,000 | #7 | [25] [26] | ||||
5 | 24 | Sunday, Monday & Tuesday 7:30 p.m. [i] | 1 February 2021 | 596,000 | #11 | 28 March 2021 | 656,000 [h] 752,000 [h] | #7 #6 | 584,000 | #9 | [27] [28] | |||||
6 | 21 | 29 August 2022 | 841,000 | #13 | 9 October 2022 | 628,000 [h] 744,000 [h] | #12 #9 | 622,000 | #13 | [29] | ||||||
7 | 12 | Wednesday & Thursday 7:30 p.m. | 4 October 2023 | 909,000 | #7 | 9 November 2023 | 763,000 [h] 833,000 [h] | #9 #7 | 749,000 | #10 | [30] [31] | |||||
8 | Sunday 7:00pm & Monday 7:30pm [j] | 9 September 2024 | 979,000 | #5 | 20 October 2024 | 763,000 | #9 | 762,000 | #9 | [32] [33] |
As of 2024 [update] , The Amazing Race Australia has visited 38 countries and all 6 inhabited continents. [a]
Most routes in The Amazing Race Australia travelled across the globe, starting from one Australian location and ending in another. There are several exceptions:
Oceania
North America
South America
Europe
| Africa
Asia
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AustraliaThe following list visits by the show to each Australian State and Territory.
| Continent countsThe first season of The Amazing Race Australia visited four continents in total (three excluding Australia). Season two extended the racecourse to North America, and season three was the first time in South America as well as a visit to Oceania outside Australia. The Amazing Race Australia has yet to visit
|
Year | Award | Category | Nominated | Result | Ref |
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2011 | Asian Television Awards | Best Adaptation of an Existing Format | Series 1, Episode 1 | Won | [34] |
Best Director | Michael McKay for Episode 1 | Won | |||
ASE Awards | Omnilab Media Award for Best Editing in a Television Non-Drama | Joel Page and Tom Meadmore | Nominated | [35] | |
2012 | International Emmy | Non-Scripted Entertainment | Series 1 | Won | [36] |
Asian Television Awards | Best Adaptation of an Existing Format | Series 2 | Nominated | ||
2013 | AACTA Awards | Best Director | Michael McKay for Episode 1 | Nominated | [37] |
Best Reality Television Series | Matthew Kowald and David Gardner | Won | |||
2020 | AACTA Awards | Best Reality Television Series | Paul Franklin, Chris Culvenor, Sophia Mogford and Stephen Tate | Nominated | [38] |
2021 | AACTA Awards | Best Reality Television Series | Sophia Mogford, Rikkie Proost, Evan Wilkes & Cathie Scott | Nominated | [39] |
2022 | AACTA Awards | Best Reality Television Series | Paul Franklin, Rikkie Proost, Chris Culvenor & Sophia Mogford | Nominated | [40] |
2024 | AACTA Awards | Best Entertainment Program | Rikkie Proost | Nominated | [41] |
2025 | AACTA Awards | Best Reality Program | Jane Rowley, Rikkie Proost, Lucy Connors & Emma Hanna | Nominated | [42] |