Cue The Summit’s dramatic music because Indy Thompson’s time on the mountain has come to an end.
During the May 29 episode, Lulu Hawton pulled the trigger on Thompson’s time, but the marine scientist insists that it was her “gender” that made her a bigger threat.
According to the Trekker, Hawton and Brooke Kilowsky’s BFF status ultimately sealed Thompson’s fate. But hey, at least Thompson gave credit where credit is due – Kilowsky was “quite the power player”!
“The two of them were so incredibly close,” Thompson admitted during an interview with Chattr before her elimination.
“Whatever Brooke said, Lulu went with and she flew under the radar sitting under Brooke’s wing. There’s no one to blame. That’s playing the game essentially numbers-wise. If you want to look at gender, they’ve got more of a chance getting rid of another female to get the two of them to the top.”
Regarding her departure from the show, Thompson said she “wasn’t filled with sadness”.
“I believe in an old saying that it’s better to have loved and lost than to have never loved at all. So for me, although it’s devastating, being as close as I was, I was so grateful for the experience that I had. It wasn’t filled with sadness. I was just filled with happiness at the fact that I got to get as far as I did.”
Indy Thompson reveals she was “petrified” of heights
As Sam Molineaux and Josh Waldhorn tackle mountains for fun, Thompson, hailing from a small town in Tasmania, found it to be a truly terrifying experience.
“I’m not used to hiking and like I always thought that was for a chairlift and choppers to get to where you wanted to go and I still don’t understand why people do it for fun. I never will,” she continued: “I’m petrified of heights, but you couldn’t let on about it. You had to put your head down, bum up, get the job done situation rather than taking in the views and the scenery because you’re so worried about keeping yourself on the mountain.”
Her day job sees Thompson teaching others fish conservation for the future, something that wasn’t shown on our screens.
“It’s the most important thing in my life,” she said. “It was actually having the show feature my everyday line of work or what inspires me basically my every day. So that was a big one [to not be shown] was the sustainability and conservation aspect of what I do.”
Even though Thompson’s backstory didn’t make the editing cut, she was thrilled that the climbers relied on grit and determination instead of their life story to reach the top.
“Now I hope Australia gets to see a little bit of the other side of the story, which I’m sure they will. Not only those who get to the top but also the people who have been shafted along the way.”
The Summit continues on Tuesday, May 30 at 7.30 pm on 9 and 9Now.
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