Tauranga men picked for Survivor NZ from 8000 Kiwi applicants

Survivor NZ host Matt Chisholm. Photo/file

Two out of the 16-strong cast of Survivor New Zealand are from Tauranga.

They will be competing for a $100,000 prize, battling it out in a Nicaraguan jungle in the ultimate test of endurance, strength and strategy.

More than 8000 New Zealanders applied for the inaugural season but only 16 got chosen, including Tauranga men Mike, a 27-year-old business analyst, and Tom, a 26-year-old teacher.

Mike said he had the skills a winner of Survivor needed.

Survivor New Zealand contestant Mike says selfish people make him mad. Photo/Scott McAulay

"Physical, social, stamina and mental strength."

He was a threat to the other contestants because he was "strategic."

"I like big challenges and like being pushed to my limit."

Tom said his key attributes for the show were being "happy, inquisitive and competitive".

Tom, a surfer, says he's ready to rough it.

He was a threat because he had been able to travel to a lot of remote areas for surfing and camping.

The men would be split into tribes with the other contestants and spend up to 40 days in the jungle.

Each week they would compete in reward and immunity challenges, with weekly eliminations by vote at a trial council until there was only one survivor left.

TVNZ said in a statement "minds and bodies will be pushed to the extreme as they battle it out in physically demanding challenges, while mentally playing their way through calculating and strategic gameplay that will test their moral values."

Survivor NZ begins on Sunday, May 7 and airs every Sunday at 7pm and every Monday at 7.30pm.