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One Contestant From Every Country Competes for a $250,000 Gold Medal

MrBeast ミスタービースト · ▶ 18:08 · 8 min read
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Overview

MrBeast flew in one person from every country on Earth to compete in what he calls "the most extreme version of the Olympics ever created." The format is elimination. There are five events: track, gymnastics, archery, fencing, and soccer penalty kicks. Each event cuts the field, and only one country leaves with a gold medal worth $250,000. The events also add twists that let contestants influence each other's chances: choosing jump order, voting to handicap rivals, picking fencing opponents, and deciding whether to take a cash buyout.

8 min read
0:27

Event One: Track Hurdles Against a Closing Wall

The first event gave contestants 30 seconds to clear three hurdles, each taller than the last, before a giant wall closed off the finish. The whole field started at once. The commentators compared the crowd of runners to "an army of people" and "zombies."

Indonesia's contestant finished first, and the host remarked that they "made that look easy." With about eight seconds left the wall was nearly shut, and the hosts were shouting at stragglers to jump. More than half the countries were eliminated in this first game, and 97 moved on. The track results mattered again later, because the top finishers got to choose their fencing opponents.

1:59

Event Two: "Gymnastics of Death"

The host described the second event as possibly "the craziest set we've ever built." Contestants climbed to an elevated course in groups of ten. Only the first five to reach a middle platform advanced, and it didn't matter which side of the course they came from.

In the first heat, Syria's contestant moved quickly through the course and took first place. Mongolia, Iraq, and Algeria were among the others shouted on. Contestants got in each other's way: in one heat the commentators shouted that a contestant was "stepping on" another, and in another that people were "stepping over his body" to get past a fallen competitor.

The host called out one feature of this challenge: contestants chose their own jump order. That led to arguments over who went first and who had to go last. In one heat Argentina's contestant was the only one still competing with one spot left. They made it and shouted "For Messi!" In that same heat only four of the ten reached the middle platform, which the host called "crazy."

The United States was eliminated in a later heat, to audible surprise from the hosts. In another heat a contestant reached the platform after five people had already arrived, and the host told them, "I'm sorry. We already have five."

In the final heat, Samoa, Fiji, and Papua New Guinea were among the finishers. Gymnastics eliminated about 50 more people, leaving 47 countries.

5:53

Event Three: Archery With Peer-Voted Handicaps

In archery, each contestant had to hit a target from a fixed platform. Before shooting, every contestant cast one vote to make the event harder for a country of their choice. Each vote pushed that country's target back ten feet.

Some contestants explained their votes in terms of politics or history. One said their country "doesn't like Israel." Another voted against Germany, citing its "history of trying to conquer everything." But the host said one country "stood out from the rest": Indonesia. Indonesia had won the track event, and voters called its contestant "the biggest threat." One voter drew a picture of what they thought Indonesia looked like on their ballot.

Results varied:

  • Guam guessed it would get three votes and was right. The contestant said it was their first time using a bow, and the shot fell short.
  • Monaco received six votes. The host joked about whether the contestant's "great hair" would "translate into great shots."
  • Azerbaijan hit the target and celebrated.
  • Saudi Arabia's contestant was described as the only girl remaining, with a bow taller than them. The shot came very close but missed.
  • Indonesia received 12 votes, putting the target 120 feet back, which the host called the farthest shot of the day by far. The host told the contestant they "should've seen this coming," since they had won the first round and been among the fastest in the second. The arrow had the height but went just to the left. The contestant apologized to Indonesians and said they had been "too big of a threat."

Archery left 16 countries.

9:17

The $10,000 Buyout

Before the next event, the host gave each remaining contestant a briefcase with $10,000. Anyone could take the money and leave. Otherwise they had to throw the briefcase into a pit and keep competing. The host pointed out that half of them were about to be eliminated, so this was their only chance to leave with $10,000.

Most turned it down, saying they had come to win. Two took the money: Italy, whom the host called the "smartest man here," and Fiji.

9:59

Event Four: Fencing, First Hit Wins

The top finishers from the track event chose their fencing opponents. Liberia chose Moldova. Eritrea chose "the last person," Luxembourg. Other pairings included Tajikistan, Madagascar, and Slovenia. Each match was one-on-one, and the first person to land a hit won. The host explained that the suits were wired to detect exactly who was hit first, the same equipment used in the real Olympics. Losers dropped into a pit, which the host called "the void."

  • Samoa vs. Azerbaijan: Samoa won.
  • Iraq vs. Madagascar: After a tense start with no hits, Iraq won. The two contestants embraced afterward.
  • Slovenia vs. Monaco: Monaco charged in, and the commentators wondered how none of the flailing landed. Slovenia advanced. Monaco's contestant said they tried their best.
  • Moldova vs. Liberia: Moldova won after backing Liberia up. One commentator thought they saw a spark.
  • Libya vs. Montenegro: In the final bout, fought over the gold medal itself, Libya won. Montenegro's contestant called it "a pleasure to fight you."
13:17

Event Five: Penalty Kicks With a Shrinking Goal

Seven countries reached the final event: Slovenia, Moldova, Tajikistan, Eritrea, Libya, Iraq, and Samoa. Several finalists spoke about what the run meant to them. One recalled worrying after giving up the $10,000 briefcase, then said they trusted themselves. Another said some people had doubted them because of their age. Others said they were competing for Iraq and for their wife.

The rule was simple: score and advance, miss and leave. Everyone scored in the first round. The crew, led by Chandler, then brought out walls to narrow the goal to what a contestant estimated was about six feet wide. People kept scoring, and the host said they would have to make it "much more difficult."

The first miss eventually came, leaving six. Instead of adding more walls, the crew moved the existing ones closer together, until the opening was "one Chandler wide." Contestants dropped quickly from there. One eliminated finalist said it had been "the best five days of my life." Samoa, whom the crowd had picked as the favorite, hit the X and was eliminated. Samoa's contestant said it was disappointing but "phenomenal," and that they thought they did their people proud.

16:37

The Final: Libya vs. Slovenia

Before the last round, a contestant predicted that "Jimmy is going to do a plot twist." The walls came down, and the two finalists took turns as goalkeeper for each other. The round would continue until one scored and the other didn't.

After an exchange that included a fake-out, one player's shot was blocked. That left Libya needing one goal to win. Libya scored and won the gold medal, which the host warned weighs 20 pounds and could "probably" be sold for $250,000. Slovenia took silver, and its contestant said, "Silver is my color, though." The host added that everyone who competed received $2,000. The video ends with the winner shouting, "This is for Libya!"

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