NBC Announces Contestants for GET OUT ALIVE WITH BEAR GRYLLS

NBC has announced the 10 teams set to participate in "Get Out Alive with Bear Grylls." The Electus-produced adventure-reality competition series premieres Monday, July 8 (9-10 p.m. ET).

The show is hosted by world-renowned survivalist Bear Grylls, who will be looking for that survival spirit, resourceful skill and heart-led determination that he knows the wild demands.

The teams navigating the treacherous New Zealand landscape in their quest to "get out alive" are:

RYAN GWIN & MADELINE MITCHELL
Ryan Gwin, 24
Hometown: Mobile, Ala.
Resides: Mobile, Ala.
Twitter: @RyanMGwin
Gwin's father taught him to hunt and fish at a young age. He played football and ran track in high school and now works for Chevron, where he is a technical analyst. He thinks this experience will not only make him and his fiancé a stronger couple, but will also allow them to be tested beyond their limits.
Madeline Mitchell, 24
Hometown: Russellville, Ala.
Resides: Mobile, Ala.
Twitter: @MadelineALUSA11
Mitchell grew up in a small town and was an all-star cheerleader, competitive pageant queen and an avid athlete. In 2008, she was involved in a nearly fatal car accident and was in intensive care for 16 days. After being told she may never walk again and then using a wheelchair for three months, Mitchell was named Miss Alabama before taking second place in the Miss USA competition. She currently teaches third grade and believes that with both her and her fiancé's abilities and different talents, they will be undefeated.

CANDEN BLISS JACKSON & DONNA NETTLES JACKSON
Canden Bliss Jackson, 23
Hometown: Fairhope, Ala.
Resides: Los Angeles, Calif.
Twitter: @CandenBliss
Canden grew up in a small Alabama town where she soon discovered a passion for horses and softball. To appease her female family members, she agreed to compete in the Miss Alabama Teen USA pageant in 2007 and won. Soon after, she decided to travel and take a year to study in Italy. Canden craves adventure and believes she can do well on the show, considering her high-level athletic ability as well as strong will and character. She currently works as an on-air host and is looking forward to spending quality time with her mother and working as a team.
Donna Nettles Jackson, 51
Hometown: Baton Rouge, La.
Resides: Fairhope, Ala.
Twitter: @ MamaDonnaOmg
Donna grew up in a family of four siblings and enjoyed a very privileged life. She eventually started modeling and in 1982 was crowned Miss Hemisphere. She hopes to push herself beyond what is comfortable, to grow along with her daughter, Canden Bliss, make her family proud and prove to the world that "50 can still kick ass!" Donna lives with her husband, Steve, a former NFL player football player as well as her son, who works as a fashion consultant. Adventure and relationship building are the reasons she looks forward to this wonderful opportunity.

AUSTIN VACH & JIM VACH
Austin Vach, 24
Hometown: Maple Valley, Wash.
Resides: Maple Valley, Wash.
Twitter: @AustinVach
Austin is the fourth of five children and grew up in a very active household. While in school, he started his own business and was able to graduate college debt free by building websites for local nonprofits. He is currently single, living at home with his parents and working full-time as a technical accounting manager at Microsoft, while saving up for a house of his own. Austin did not get the same interaction with his dad, Jim, that his older brothers received and he hopes this experience will help create more bonding opportunities.
Jim Vach, 61
Hometown: Fresno, Calif.
Resides: Maple Valley, Wash.
Twitter: @JimVach
Jim and his wife have five children and seven grandchildren. He worked as a postal inspector for nearly 29 years where he investigated the largest sweepstakes fraud case in the U.S., the two largest mortgage frauds in the history of Washington, and served for seven years on the Seattle FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force. He retired in 2007 and has since worked as a fraud analyst with the Postal Inspection Service. Jim feels that the experience and mental toughness that he and Austin share will give them an advantage in the competition.

WILSON & ROBIN SHEPPARD
Wilson Sheppard, 40
Hometown: Baton Rouge, La.
Resides: Altadena, Calif.
Twitter: @CaptainWilson
Wilson was introduced to hunting and fishing as a young boy, while also remaining an honors student. When Wilson and Robin started dating, she had never been boating or fishing. Together they joined a fishing club, regularly participating in club tournaments. In 2007, Wilson enrolled with the Mariner's School to earn his boat captain's license. Since then, he has operated a sport-fishing boat in Alaska, passenger ferries in Long Beach and private charter yachts in San Pedro. He sees this opportunity as a way to showcase their team skills and competitive nature.
Robin Sheppard, 36
Hometown: Washington, D.C.
Resides: Altadena, Calif.
Twitter: @RobinDionne
Robin was very active in band and cheerleading throughout high school and graduated as president of her high school. Both of Robin's parents passed away right after retiring and never fulfilled their desire to travel, which inspired Robin and Wilson to travel as often as they could. Robin sees this opportunity as a way to increase her communication skills with Wilson and to sharpen her leadership and survival skills in corporate America. She currently serves as a district sales manager for a sales and marketing company.

ANDREW "LUCKY" & ANDREA "LOUIE" LARSON
Andrew "Lucky" Larson, 58
Hometown: Stillman Valley, Ill.
Resides: Stillman Valley, Ill.
Twitter: @lucky_larson13
Lucky was born on Friday the 13th, hence the nickname. Growing up in rural Illinois, much of his time was spent driving tractors, milking cows and riding horses. He is a carpenter who specializes in recycling old buildings and used materials. As a rugged outdoorsman, Lucky always assumed he'd have sons and treated his daughters as if they were boys. He hopes that the outcome of this experience will give his daughter Louie more confidence in herself.
Andrea "Louie" Larson, 24
Hometown: Stillman Valley, Ill.
Resides: Chicago, Ill.
Twitter: @loulou_bell23
Louie grew up on a goat dairy farm where she spent much of her time outside with her father. Her father taught her how to hunt, trap, fish, skin an animal and care for the environment. Louie feels lucky to have grown up to be capable and tough, yet still having a girly edge. Lucky and Louie have been on several outdoor adventures together and she hopes this experience will allow them to grow their mutual respect.

ALICIA BERKWITT & SPENCER HILL
Alicia Berkwitt, 28
Hometown: Phoenix, Ariz.
Resides: Marina del Rey, Calif.
Twitter: @aliciaberkwitt
Growing up was difficult for Berkwitt, whose parents divorced when she was 17. Berkwitt moved to Southern California when she was 20 and started building her hair extensions business. She met Spencer a year ago and is excited about their future together. She hopes this opportunity will let her see him in extreme situations because she wants to see how he reacts under pressure.
Spencer Hill, 35
Hometown: Emporia, Kan.
Resides: Los Angeles, Calif.
Twitter: @spencehill
Growing up, Hill played tennis, basketball and football. He has lived in Los Angeles for 12 years, working as a bartender and recently started his own clothing line. As he gets older, he definitely wants to get married and have a family. Hill views "Get Out Alive" as an opportunity to test to his relationship with Alicia and as a chance for them to get to know each other's strengths and weaknesses.

CHRIS WINTER & JEFF POWELL
Chris Winter, 28
Hometown: Rockwall, Texas
Resides: Dallas, Texas
Twitter: @seearewinter
Winter is athletic but claims to be a giant geek. He works as a telecommunications field technician and met his best friend and teammate, Jeff, through video games. In his spare time, Winter enjoys a variety of outdoor activities that include long-boarding, golfing, hiking and snowboarding. He says this endeavor will be something that he and Jeff can look back on and reminisce when they are older.
Jeff Powell, 29
Hometown: Garland, Texas
Resides: Dallas, Texas
Twitter: @ReffreyJobert
Powell is a spontaneous adventurer who loves to travel and be challenged. Four months ago he was in a life-threatening motorcycle accident that left him hospitalized, with multiple broken Bones and internal injuries. He has worked and trained diligently to recover his body back to normal, and one would never know that just short time ago he was unable to walk. Still not fully recovered from his accident, Powell believes he can do anything put before him. Powell is a natural leader and with this adventure, he hopes to put their teamwork to the test and accomplish something bigger than anything they have ever dreamed of.

ROYCE WADSWORTH & KYLE KRIEGER
Royce Wadsworth, 25
Hometown: Corcoran, Calif.
Resides: West Hollywood, Calif.
Twitter: @RoyceWaddy
Wadsworth grew up as a competitive gymnast, and was very athletic in high school. An overachiever, Wadsworth was also the drum major of the marching band, class president and co-valedictorian. He graduated college from UCLA and now works in finance and human resources in the movie production industry. In his spare time he's involved with beach volleyball, snowboarding, lifting weights and is currently training for a half-ironman triathlon.
Kyle Krieger, 29
Hometown: Washington, D.C.
Resides: West Hollywood, Calif.
Twitter: @KyleKriegerHair
Krieger grew up playing soccer but as his sister's athleticism began to shine, Krieger felt very alone. Struggling to feel comfortable with his sexuality and hanging out in his sister's shadow, he turned to drugs and alcohol at a young age. During college, he came out to his friends and family as gay, allowing him to feel supported and tackle his addiction. Kyle has been clean and sober for six years and is a hairstylist at a top Beverly Hills salon. His newfound budding friendship with Royce will either flourish or break during this experience.

VANESSA VAZQUEZ & ERICA FRANKLIN
Vanessa Vazquez, 23
Hometown: Chicago, Ill.
Resides: Chicago, Ill.
Twitter: @VanessaV_312
Vazquez grew up in a low-income household where money was very tight, but the family bond was strong. She is the youngest of six children and being the only girl, knows how to hold her own among the boys. She is currently a college student studying biology and works as a waitress. She is ready to grow and evolve alongside her best friend, Erica, and is excited to test themselves as well as their friendship.
Erica Franklin, 24
Hometown: Chicago, Ill.
Resides: Chicago, Ill.
Twitter: @1efrank
Franklin was constantly compared to her older sister growing up. She never felt like her own person until people took notice of her when she sang in her high school talent show. A vivacious and independent woman, she is always ready to surprise people. As a hairstylist, Franklin values and understands the importance of beauty, but can let her hair down when needed. She is ready to test her bond with Vanessa and, if they can make it, come out stronger on the other side.

ESMERALDA & DOMINIC DEPIERRO
Esmeralda Depierro, 25
Hometown: Wilmington, N.C.
Resides: Miami Beach, Fla.
Twitter: @LYLExtensions
Esmeralda was known as a military brat among her friends while growing up due to her father being in the U.S. Coast Guard. This girly yet tough Puerto Rican's top passion in life has always been to become a successful business owner, and recently started her own online business called "Love Your Locks Extensions." Esmeralda and her husband, Dominic, are currently trying to make the business a success. They have both been working so much that they have not taken any time to enjoy life and hope this opportunity will do the trick.
Dominic Depierro, 26
Hometown: Brooklyn, N.Y.
Resides: Miami Beach, Fla.
Twitter: @D_DePierro
Dominic spent all his time in the kitchen with his parents carrying on Greek and Italian traditions and learned how to cook at a very early age. He picked up football in high school and quickly moved up to varsity. Dominic considers Esmeralda the love of his life. He hopes this opportunity will allow their relationship to get to the next level in a way that Esmeralda could finally trust Dominic to take care of her.

"Get Out Alive with Bear Grylls" tests 10 two-person teams beyond their wildest imaginations in this non-stop extreme survival journey. Their mission is threefold: survive the wild, journey as a group and avoid elimination. Each week Grylls will send home another team. In the end, only one duo will remain - the team that he believes has shown the most heart, courage, initiative and resolve in their quest to "get out alive" and claim a life-changing grand prize of $500,000.

All along the way, Grylls - an ultimate adventure survival expert - will be observing the group, from either from vantage points or while traveling with them. If the situation requires, he will step in, but the duos must work together to overcome the cold, fatigue and hardships. At the end of each leg of the journey, there are difficult and emotional decisions to be made by Grylls as he chooses who should leave the expedition.

As the stakes get higher, the obstacles become more unyielding. As civilization gets closer, the journeys get harder, until ultimately only one duo remains. That team will have endured and survived the ultimate test of character and fortitude - walking away with the grand prize, along with the scars and pride that they proved themselves capable to "Get Out Alive with Bear Grylls."

NBC's "Get Out Alive with Bear Grylls" is a larger-than-life extreme adventure reality-competition series headlined by world-renowned adventurer Bear Grylls, to be co-produced by Bear Grylls Ventures and Ben Silverman's multimedia studio, Electus.

About Electus

Electus is the first integrated multimedia entertainment studio to unite producers, creators, advertisers and distributors under one roof and produce all forms of content for distribution across a variety of platforms around the world. Headed by Ben Silverman in partnership with IAC (NASDAQ: IACI), the company connects advertisers, distributors and content creators early on in the development process, enabling marketers and advertisers to be a true partner in campaigns and content creation. Electus International, the global distribution arm or Electus, is responsible for all international sales and distribution for Electus' programming and its studio partners as well as programs and formats from other well-known third-party providers.

About Bear Grylls Ventures

Bear Grylls Ventures (BGV) manages all television, film, books, licensing and endorsement deals for the survival expert. The goal of the company is to develop and endorse projects that embrace adventure and inspire people to realize their dreams. Product partners include Gerber Knives, Craghoppers, Bushnell, Coreban, Degree Men, Bear River and Dockers.

Please visit the official show site at http://www.nbc.com/get-out-alive/.

For the latest "Get Out Alive with Bear Grylls" news, videos, and photos, please like on Facebook, follow on Twitter, and follow on Google+:

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