Merve Aydın

Merve Aydın — Biography

Merve Aydın first made her name as an 800 meter runner and has since become one of the most frequently returning contestants on Survivor. She holds the Turkish indoor 800 m record and is remembered for finishing her race at the 2012 London Olympics despite an injury. After her sporting career she became known on television as a contestant.

Running for Fenerbahçe, Aydın won silver in the 800 m at the 2008 World Junior Championships and the 2011 European Under-23 Championships. At the 2011 Universiade in Shenzhen she took a second silver with the 4x400 m relay team, and her European Under-23 performance got her past the Olympic B standard. In London she was injured in the second lap of her 800 m heat; she finished the race in tears, last in her heat, to applause from the stands.

She entered television in 2013 with Bana Her Şey Yakışır and in 2014 competed on Survivor with the celebrities' team, finishing third after 111 days. In the 2015 Survivor All Star she reached the final and came second in the public vote; she was in the 2018 and 2024 All Star casts too. In 2019 she opened a sports school under her own name. She was on screen again in the 2026 season. She married in 2018 and has a son.