Yannick knew he was threatened on the board of Koh-Lanta, the cursed totem, but his strategy did not work. To save his place in the adventure, he had hatched a plan with his former acolytes from the yellow team: let the reds think that they were going to vote against Maxime – an ex-red – but in reality target Louana, head of the ‘opposing team. The gamble would have worked wonderfully if Bastien had not informed Maxime. The latter, incredulous as to the enmity he would inspire, hastened to warn potential turkeys of the farce of what was going on. The ex-reds thus raised their voices against Yannick, who was eliminated at the end of the episode broadcast on Tuesday on TF1. 20 minutes come back with him on this outcome.
Did you approach this advice calmly?
No, I was not serene. I have a pretty strong sense of observation and I noticed that the body language of some reds had changed. I figured something was off. Anyway, you should never be calm before advice, it would be a serious mistake to be: we have seen it for some adventurers who have paid the price.
Did you understand that Maxime had revealed your strategy to the old reds?
I only became aware of it when I left for the council. It was the only possible explanation for the change in behavior of the reds. Maxime was the only one with this information in the other team.
Until the reunification, you held two black bracelets, synonymous with two votes against you in the councils in which you participated. Were you surprised not to have been more in the hot seat?
(He laughs) It makes me laugh because I see that people are focusing on bracelets by saying to themselves: “He has bracelets, you have to take him out. “But maybe on the collective events I was efficient, I helped my team, that the current was going well with the majority of my tribe. I think that’s reason enough not to be eliminated or targeted first. It’s important to show and prove your worth to your team. I think I did it in the purples and yellows.
Haven’t you thought about developing a strategy around Setha’s (imaginary) necklace? By the way, did you think it existed?
When she told me about it, yes, I thought it existed. I trusted her, so I didn’t question her word for a moment. Everything happened very quickly, so I didn’t think of playing the imaginary necklace card. There were other strategies to put in place.
We saw you very affected by the elimination of Setha, condemned by Colin during the Council of Ambassadors…
Yes, we talked a lot. We talked a lot when we were with the purples, then when we met with the yellows. We have aspects of our lives that resonate. That his adventure ends in this way… I would never have wished that for one of my allies.
Looking back, how do you view your career?
Watching the episodes, I relive all the emotions felt at the time. I keep in mind that it’s a game, I take a step back from that. I also analyze what I was able to do, how I played, the mistakes I made… We go through and we take advantage of the broadcast and what it brings behind.
What error are you thinking of, for example?
To the fact of not having told Bastien to keep the fact that we were going to vote against Louana to himself. We didn’t need Maxime’s vote, we didn’t need to talk to him about it. But, again, everything goes very quickly on Koh Lanta and this is an aspect that I neglected when it could have made the difference.
Were you aware, during filming, that Nicolas, ex-yellow, was also close to certain ex-reds?
Not at all. We knew that Nicolas was close to the old greens. It was said and it was normal – just like me, I was close to Ambre or Jean-Charles [anciens membres de l’équipe violette]. Now, going to disclose our voting intentions not even two days after reunification, when he spent as much time in the yellow team as in the green team, I find that very average. But everyone plays as they feel.
Have you kept in touch with many adventurers?
I stayed close to Anne-Sophie and Bastien. I exchange regularly with Amber. We are all in a group where we can chat among ourselves. Just yesterday [lundi], Maxime called me to get some news. There are stronger affinities with some than with others, but that’s how it is in general in life.