Meet the contestants competing on Rush 2023 (2024)

The brand new season of Rush will premiere on Sunday July 2 and will follow 12 everyday Aussies on an electrifying global adventure.

Deprived of sight or sound, they will be dropped in some of the most exotic places on Earth with one mission – to be the first to get out and move on to the next destination.

Rush starts Sunday, July 2 at 7.00pm on Nine and 9Now.

Three teams of four will compete but As the numbers reduce and the teams dwindle to individuals, one winner will emerge and win a life-changing prize of $100,000 and two first-class, around-the-world airline tickets.

There's a whole bunch of interesting characters taking part in Rush Season 1; from cattle farmers and CEOs to childcare professionals and transport drivers.

Scroll through to see who will be racing around the world.

Ex-rock star and now yoga teacher and greatness coach, Tommy has seen a lot of the world and wants to use his travel experience to help him get his team to the Escape Zones first.

Being a greatness coach is a calling for Tommy, who said: "A lot of people ask me what a greatness coach is. Basically I believe everyone has an incredible amount of magic within them which they haven't put to use yet. So my job is to literally do some digging and pull that magic out in people."

Not one to follow the status quo, Tommy worked in a corporate job before leaving it behind to become a musician, living in the US for six years before turning his life into one that gives something back.

Naturally inquisitive, he hopes his intuition for people and situations will help with whatever Rush throws at him.

At just 21, Rush's youngest traveller Tylen hasn't seen a lot of the world, but thinks his country boy charm will take him to the end, saying: "I'm here to prove that the old country boy goes alright! I'm ready to hook in!"

Born into a cattle farming family, Tylen works with his dad in the family beef business and spends his days mustering on horseback and doing long hours on the land.

"I try and get up around 4am, have brekky with Dad, and get moving, sometimes not getting home till late in the night. Working on the land is so diverse. You go out with Plan A when you're mustering and come back with Plan Z because everything has changed. You have to roll with it," he said.

Tylen isn't fazed by the competitive nature of the show because he is used to succeeding under pressure, having represented Queensland in footy, playing in Rockhampton and the Sunshine Coast for the Falcons.

He's looking forward to the excitement of visiting so many incredible locations, and if he wins he wants to spend the money on more land and a house.

Sofia is a content creator and a nomad with no permanent address, calling Australia her backyard while travelling around the country and living in her campervan for the last 10 months.

While she shocked friends and family by leaving her corporate job and selling her house to live this lifestyle, Sofia does not regret it at all.

She said: "I started my career in real estate at 18 and climbed the ladder, winning awards and loving it. I bought a house really young and was having a successful career. I hit 25 and realised it wasn't what I wanted, so I took a leap of faith and decided to travel around Australia."

Sofia says being a content creator is the reason she gets up every day and loves sharing her adventures with the people who follow her. With over 600,000 followers on TikTok, she calls them her besties and loves the connections she makes with them.

A fitter welder from Western Sydney, Madeline is a mother of three who loves an adventure and healthy competition.

Believing that honesty is the best policy, Madeline works in a male-dominated industry and uses it as a tool to teach her children to look outside the square when it comes to careers and prove that gender doesn't define their role.

Spontaneous and not one to be told what to do, she says the best way to get her to do something is to tell her she can't and she'll prove you wrong.

Madeline says: "I think we're on this planet for such a short amount of time so why would you waste a minute of it not adventuring or seeing as much as you can see? If not now, when?"

She grew up on a dairy farm in New Zealand and has seen a lot of the world, living in America before settling in Australia.

Leaving her family behind for this adventure is the toughest part for her, and while her dream would be to take them with her, Madeline knows it'll make her a better mum, inspiring them by pushing herself to do hard thin

A bookkeeper from Perth, Fiona knows how to run a tight ship, especially when it comes to travelling. This mother of two boys loves to see the world, but admits the organiser in her might be thrown when she's dropped into unknown territory.

Not one to shy away from confrontation, Fiona says loyalty is very important to her, so finding the right teammates who will be up for the adventure will be key in her getting to the end.

Though she has travelled around the world, she wouldn't want her teammates to know there are a few things that will scare her. "I wouldn't want people to know that I can be a bit of a scaredy cat, like I don't want to jump off a big cliff or out of a plane."

Fiona is coming into this adventure to prove to herself that she can compete with the young kids and have a good time.

Outgoing, loyal and competitive, Adam from Sydney's western suburbs loves to rip it up on the dance floor and make music with his mates.

Growing up he didn't get many chances to travel the world, so having this opportunity is something Adam couldn't turn down.

He said: "I love meeting new people, I love seeing new things. Those things don't leave you. You always remember it, but to go somewhere new in the world, that would be a lifetime thing for me. I've only been to Bali."

While a dream holiday for Adam sounds more like co*cktails in Greece, he's excited by the adventure of the unknown and putting himself out of his comfort zone. But he admits that camping and roughing it is not his idea of a good time.

He says: "I need a shower, my bed, I need to feel comfy and I'm not that guy who likes fending for myself. I'll stay in a hotel by myself or a cabin when my mates pitch a tent camping. Have fun boys, have fun!"

Not one to be bored, Najmah likes to try new things. She takes up a new hobby on a weekly basis and has learnt everything from jiu-jitsu to painting and kayaking.

Born in Kenya, raised in New Zealand and living in Australia since she was 12, Najmah says moving around as a kid helped her adapt to different environments and hopes these skills will get her team to the end.

Najmah, the youngest of five, says she gets underestimated a lot, but it's a mistake that people discover quickly when they get to know. "I'm pretty ambitious when it comes to getting things done and I'm competitive," she says. "I work as a psychiatric nurse, I'm used to dealing with sensitive situations and people, so I think that will work well for me out here."

She also reckons she is good at persuading people to come around to her plans.

A Christmas tree farmer, Hamish spends his time mountain biking, surfing, snowboarding and looking for adventure, saying: "I like to push myself out of the comfort zone and am a thrill seeker, but I'm also a bit of a nerd.

"I love to study and read, go to museums. I've been a tour guide in a few different places and love to talk to people, learn about cultures and history."

As well as running the Christmas tree business with his family, Hamish has a Masters in Business Administration and has worked in countries like Panama, Columbia, Canada and the Amazon.

Travelling is a huge passion for him and he loves to immerse himself in different cultures and environments. He says seeing so much of the world has evoked a passion for sustainability which he hopes he can make a career out of by doing something that makes a difference.

Competitive and a natural leader, Hamish tries not to let stress get to him, but knows how far this adventure could push him and is excited by the unknown.

As CEO of a disability organisation, Priscilla admits to being a hustler and says people often tell her she reminds them of Sofia Vergara from the TV show Modern Family, who isn't afraid to tell it like it is.

While she thrives under pressure she says her confidence wasn't always there, but is proud of how far she has come and now says: "I'm a confident person at work and can be very loud, but the people that I love and who love me get to see the weaker vulnerable side of me."

CK is a strategy manager from Melbourne who has worked hard straight out of university to achieve his work goals.

He said: "I look at my friends who have gone travelling and think that would've been nice, but I think this might be my opportunity to come back around and do everything."

Hoping to use his strategy skills to help him get his team through all the missions, CK is competitive, driven and determined. Although he learnt Mandarin and French in school, he's not sure his memory of languages will serve him well in this instance.

Describing himself as very direct, CK said: "I guess I could be a little savage when I need to drop hard truths and get it done, but I don't enjoy it. I like to be diplomatic when I can.

"But you won't believe how competitive I am, and it's more the sense of proving people wrong rather than winning. I like to break stereotypes that people might have when they first meet me."