TV and Movies

Nadia Jaftha and Trevor Lagerway winners of ‘Tropika Island of Treasure Curaçao’

The finale for SABC3’s “Tropika Island of Treasure Curaçao” came down to Team Cool Red (Nadia Jaftha and Trevor Lagerway) and Team Mango Peach (Siphesihle Vazi and Darren Solomon) vying for the R1 million prize.

Both teams were put through their paces in the final challenge, but it was Team Cool Red who emerged victorious after correctly guessing the combination to unlock the chest and reap the rewards.

In the reunion segment of the 9th season, which was done in a virtual space, host Katlego Maboe got the winners talking about their formidable partnership.

On emerging victorious, Jaftha, an actress, musician and social media sensation, said: “I was hoping for the best, honestly, but I thought that if I became too confident that I was going to win then something was going to change.

 

With Trevor, it was easy to get the challenges done in a certain way because of his lifestyle and experience in this regard. So, no – I didn’t expect to win but I was definitely hopeful.”

She added: “It feels surreal because I came in seeing myself as an underdog and I don’t think anyone expected me to win over the other strong male and female celebrities who participated in this season. It’s really great representing Cape Town and the coloured community with this win. I am super proud of myself.”

Nadia, katlego and Trevor

Lagerway, a fitness fanatic and MC, added: “The final challenge was the most difficult task we undertook the whole season and after clinching that win, it took a while for that feeling to sink in. We started off the finale in such a big lead but Vazi and Darren quickly caught up to us and that stress definitely impacted our performance.

“But, standing on top of the castle with Nadia gave me such euphoria. It’s a feeling I won’t forget anytime soon. It was so epic standing up on the castle and waving that winning flag.

“The best part of the win was seeing the hard work Nadia and I put in throughout the season had paid off. We made such a great team and it was really great sharing that moment with her.”

One of the hardest things for Jaftha was being unable to share the big news a secret from her family.

She shared: “I couldn’t tell my family that I won because they’re so bad at keeping secrets! My mom only found out this week because I knew that if I told her sooner, she would want to tell the whole family.

“It’s been so funny because she’s been begging me for the results for months and I eventually had to make her believe that I did make it quite far because I arrived back in SA late during the filming process.

“So, I told her I made it far but that I didn’t win so she would get off my back. The first thing you want to do is share news like this but I knew I had to keep it under wraps in case the news came out and would spoil the show for others.”

trevor and nadia

On how Lagerway plans to spend his share of R1 million, he revealed: “I have given a big chunk of it to The Lighthouse Foundation. That was something that I felt I needed to do. With the rest of the money, the plan was to take my wife on a holiday before we welcome our baby into the world in October, but because of Covid-19, we haven’t had the chance to do that just yet. I will definitely try to be smart with the rest of the money.”

Jaftha donated some of her winnings to The Habibia Children’s Home.

She added: “I will also be putting some money aside for a house. Property is so expensive in Cape Town so this will definitely give me the boost I need. When it is safe to travel again, I want to spoil myself with a little trip as well.”

While Lagerway, who has sold his gym, is looking at taking his business online, he also has plans to start delivering talks on health and fitness. And Jaftha, who has completed a movie which should be releasing next year, post the Covid-19 crisis, she also has some new music releasing soon.

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