CBS has revealed the identities of the 11 "dating couples" who will be competing on the 26th season of The Amazing Race, which premieres with a special 90-minute episode on Wednesday, February 25 at 9:30PM ET/PT.
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As previously announced during The Amazing Race's Season 25 finale, the new edition will feature a "blind date" twist in which half of the couples have a pre-existing relationship and the other half have never even met each other prior to the Race's first leg.
"Usually we have people who know each other really well. In this particular case, we have five blind dates and six regular dates," The Amazing Race's executive producer Bertram van Munster said in a statement. "Going on a blind date to a restaurant is one thing, but going on a blind date around the world is like rolling the dice in a big way."
In another new twist, the teams will have an opportunity to win a "Date Night" reward, which will allow one couple to get away and enjoy a one-on-one romantic activity -- such as an evening at a hot springs resort in Nagano, Japan, or star-gazing at the Bavarian Public Observatory in Munich, Germany.
Viewers may recognize a few people who will be part of the pre-existing dating couples. New Kids on the Block member Jonathan Knight will race with his partner Harley Rodriguez, while Olympic medalists and athletes Aly Dudek and Steven Langton are also paired up for the race around the world.
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As for the couples who will be experiencing an extreme version of a blind date, they include a Navy physician, a registered nurse and two lawyers.
Over the course of the Race, the contestants will travel to places like Tokyo, Bangkok, Namibia, and Monaco while competing in a series of both mental and physical challenges in attempt to cross the finish line in first place and win the show's $1 million grand prize.
Hosted once again by Phil Keoghan, The Amazing Race will span five continents, eight countries and more than 35,000 miles.
Following the debut broadcast of The Amazing Race's 26th season, the series will return to its regular time period of Friday nights at 8PM ET/PT beginning on February 27.
Below is a list of the 11 teams who will be participating in The Amazing Race's 26th edition:
The Pre-existing Dating Couples:
- Aly Dudek, a 24-year-old Olympic athlete from Milwaukee, WI, and Steven Langton, a 31-year-old Olympic athlete from Boston, MA.
Aly won bronze at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics in short track speed skating, while Steven won two bronze medals at the 2014 Sochi Olympics in bobsledding. They've been dating for seven months.
- Harley Rodriguez, a 41-year-old group fitness trainer, and Jonathan Knight, a 46-year-old entertainer.
They are both from New York, NY, and have been dating for seven years.
- Jeff Magee, a 57-year-old airline pilot from McCall, ID, and Lyda Grawn, a 49-year-old flight attendant from Scottsdale, AZ.
Jeff and Lyda have known each other for 20 years but only started dating four years ago.
- C.J. Harris, a 26-year-old IT technician, and Lebya Simpson, a 25-year-old medical support assistant.
They are both from Tuskagee, AK. C.J. and Lebya have been dating for 10 years although they've known each other for 15 years.
- Matt Cucolo, 30, and Ashley Gordon, 28, are both hairstylists from Scarsdale, NY.
They have known each other for 10 years but have only been dating for three years.
- Rochelle Nevedal, a 29-year-old contract engineer from Kalkaska, MI, and Michael Dombrowski, a 26-year-old truck stop manager and pro wrestling promoter from Traverse City, MI.
Rochelle and Michael have been dating for two years.
The Blind Date Couples:
- Hayley Keel, a 28-year-old registered nurse from St. Petersburg, FL, and Blair Townsend, a 31-year-old Navy physician from Jacksonville, FL.
- Jackie Ibarra, a 27-year-old professional dancer from Las Vegas, NV, and Jeffrey Weldon, a 26-year-old account executive and salesman from Tampa, FL.
- Laura Pierson, a 29-year-old talent booker from Los Angeles, CA, and Tyler Adams, a 26-year-old mobile app developer from Santa Monica, CA.
- Jenny Wu, a blogger and lawyer from Los Angeles, CA, and Jelani Roy, a lawyer from New York, NY. They are both 32-years-old.
- Bergen Olson, a 23-year-old human resources project manager from Sunnyvale, CA, and Kurt Jordan Belcher, a 24-year-old pageant consultant from Butler, KY
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski