The 18 contestants competing this fall on Survivor: Gabon—Earth’s Last Eden for the series' 17th cycle include an Olympic gold medalist, a Gilmore Girls actress, and a professional video game champion, EW.com has learned exclusively. Crystal Cox, who won gold at the Athens Games in 2004 as part of the 4x400m track relay team, is the biggest name on the roster this season, which premieres with a two-hour episode on Sept. 25. Also among the fresh faces is Jessica “Sugar” Kiper (Gilmore Girls fans may remember her as the pin-up model who made out with Milo Ventimiglia during her four-episode arc as Shane) and Ken Hoang, the current international champion of Nintendo’s Super Smash Brothers Melee video game. There will also be a prominent international presence, with contestants who have lived in South Africa (Gillian Larson), London (Ace Gordon), and Chile (Paloma Soto-Castillo).

As for the format, the biggest twist of Survivor: Gabon involves Exile (formerly Exile Island). “When you go to Exile this time you can either get a clue that will help you find the hidden immunity idol, or you can get ‘instant comfort’ — a nice thing to sleep on, some food, some fruit,” explains host Jeff Probst. “Depending upon the time, we’ll make the temptation bigger and bigger. The idea was to see if anybody would be dumb enough to choose comfort over the only thing that guarantees you to stick in the game, which is immunity.” Okay, did it work? “By the time this season is over, you can make the case that maybe this is the dumbest team when it comes to idol play.”

to Also for the first time ever, Survivor: Gabon will be shot entirely in HD. “If you’re a Survivor fan and you have HD, it will be a completely different show,” Probst promises. “When you incorporate the wildlife, it’s kind of like being in a Spielberg movie. I mean, it’s so real-looking that it’s exciting and scary.” And that wildlife Probst speaks of will come into play when elephants visit a tribe camp. “A truly real, raw moment of a wild animal that’s not in a park or some protected area,” Probst says.

The contestants of Survivor: Gabon will be divided up into two tribes at the very outset by a good old fashioned schoolyard pick ’em, which will immediately lead to the contestants’ first challenge. And while there are no hardcore “showmances” this time around, Probst does tease that one player proves particularly popular: “Marcus, the doctor from Georgia — one of the most arrogant guys that we’ve had on the show — he at one point had three people after him. And not only women.”

JESSICA ''SUGAR'' KIPER
AGE: 29
OCCUPATION: Pin-up/actress (Gilmore Girls)
HOMETOWN: Brooklyn, NY
SUGAR SAYS: ''I want to make everyone fall in love with me. And I want to be friends with everybody. That's all I got: my personality. I'm not strong.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''She makes every decision from her heart and not her head. She's very emotional, somewhat naïve, and I think when you first look at her, the question is going to be, 'Can she hack it out here? Does she have what it takes?' It doesn't take much for Sugar to break into tears.''

ACE GORDON
AGE: 27
OCCUPATION: Fashion photographer/Cartier salesman
HOMETOWN: Naples, FL (raised in London)
ACE SAYS: ''I watch the game, I know how to play the game, I've done sales my whole life, I'm good with people, and I'm physically adept. And I'm a manipulative bastard.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''You would expect him to be like a villain in a Bond movie who dies a horrible death at the end. It's almost like a blind arrogance, and he's really fun to watch. And I think his accent could work for him or against him, but there is something about the accent that makes everything he says seem smarter.''

CORINNE KAPLAN
AGE: 29
OCCUPATION: Pharmaceutical sales rep
HOMETOWN: Los Angeles, CA
CORINNE SAYS: ''Honestly, like, I'm a girl. We've all starved ourselves here and there. I can starve for a little while. I think there are no losers in Survivor: We all come home skinny, detoxed, and tan. We're all winners.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''Corinne is a self-proclaimed über-bitch, and she owns it. I think the meanest thing you could say to Corinne would be to say, 'You're very pleasant.' She would take that as an insult of the highest order.''

KEN HOANG
AGE: 22
OCCUPATION: Pro video gamer
HOMETOWN: Westminster, CA
KEN SAYS: ''Gaming will help me because I do well under pressure. I always come through. I rarely choke. I'm the underdog, I think all the fans will root for me to win. I would root for myself if I was watching TV.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''Ken the gamer is one of my favorite people who has been on the show in a long time. He is convinced his gaming expertise is absolutely in line with what it takes to win, that he knows this game backward and forward simply because he's a gamer. But Ken is a true nerd. I think when the show began he weighed less than [China's] Courtney did.''

KELLY CZARNECKI
AGE: 22
OCCUPATION: Retail sales
HOMETOWN: Buffalo Grove, IL
KELLY SAYS: ''I'm funny, and I'm fun, and I'm energetic, and I bring a positive vibe to the group — like a burst of sunshine.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''The way I would describe Kelly is that she is part of the Text Message Generation. And she speaks that way, she'll say 'OMG!' for 'Oh my God!' That's Kelly. And just as a grown man looking at her I could say, 'That's charming, she's young and has her whole life ahead of her.' But as a tribemate I'd probably say, 'If she says OMG, I'll probably say GTFOH.'''

RANDY BAILEY
AGE: 49
OCCUPATION: Videographer
HOMETOWN: Eagle Rock, MN
RANDY SAYS: ''I'll step on toes if I have to. These people were not friends of mine last week and time will tell if they'll be friends of mine two months from now. But a million dollars is more important than their friendship. Except maybe with that one blonde with the big t---. That might be worth a few hundred grand.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''Randy is crotchety and clever. He's the guy who will come to Tribal Council and try to challenge me, which is a huge mistake, because I'm not playing for a million dollars. But I don't think he's as evil as he wants you to think he is.''

CRYSTAL COX
AGE: 29
OCCUPATION: Athlete (2004 Olympic gold medalist in the 4x400m track relay)
HOMETOWN: Durham, NC
CRYSTAL SAYS: ''I will win Survivor because I have the three Bs — brains, beauty, and blazing speed.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''I think Crystal's big dilemma is going to be, 'What does she say that she does? Who does she say she is?' Because it's obvious she's an athlete. Crystal has a mouth on her. She does not edit. That makes her great at Tribal Council, but a liability in the game.''

CHARLIE HERSCHEL
AGE: 29
OCCUPATION: Lawyer
HOMETOWN: New York, NY
CHARLIE SAYS: ''I haven't really noticed any crazy people, which kind of makes me nervous that either I'm the crazy person or there are no crazy people.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''Charlie prides himself on being very bright and educated. And the question I'd say for Charlie is, 'Can he stand up for himself? Does he really have a voice?' Or is he just going to look for somebody to hang on to and see how far they'll pull him along.''

PALOMA SOTO-CASTILLO
AGE: 24
OCCUPATION: Student
HOMETOWN: Downey, CA (born in Chile)
PALOMA SAYS: ''I think I deserve it. I've worked really hard in my life. I'm very competitive. I'm stubborn. I'm compassionate, and passionate.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''Paloma is sassy, cute. My question for her is, 'Is her attitude real, or is it a put on?' And if it is a put-on, how long will she be able to sustain it when she starts getting hungry? Paloma's going to have to pick the right alliance. Who you decide to team up with early on has such an impact on how you do in the game, because if you pick the wrong people, it can be hard to get out from under that.''

DANNY ''G.C.'' BROWN
AGE: 26
OCCUPATION: Maintenance supervisor
HOMETOWN: Portland, OR
G.C. SAYS: ''I will win Survivor because I need this million dollars more than anyone out here.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''G.C. is a fish out of water. Does he have the fortitude to really do this? Because when I talked to him before the show it seemed like a lot of nervous energy masquerading as confidence. But it was, really, I felt, fear, like 'What am I getting into?' And that's not a good place to be because what you're getting into is a big ol' headache.''

GILLIAN LARSON
AGE: 61
OCCUPATION: Retired Nurse
HOMETOWN: Temecula, CA (raised in South Africa)
GILLIAN SAYS: ''I love doing all sorts of crazy things. It doesn't matter what age you are. As long as you can physically do it, do it! And hopefully they'll look at me as a mom and you know, who would like to kick their mother out of the game?''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''Charm is her strength because she's likable in doses, and that's her liability. Does she know when enough is enough? You can only hear someone say 'I'm from South Africa' so many times before you want to say, 'Why don't you go back to South Africa!'''

MATTY WHITMORE
AGE: 29
OCCUPATION: Personal trainer
HOMETOWN: Pacific Palisades, CA
MATTY SAYS: ''I'm a fierce competitor. I don't want to lose. I was raised in the mountains and also in the city, so I got the wilderness down and I got the humanity down.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''I think Matty will be one of the favorites this season, someone people will absolutely love. I find him to be one of the most endearing guys we've ever had on the show to the point where it could work against him because he can't hide anything. If he's confused, he says 'I'm confused.' If he's happy, he's smiling. If he's sad, he's crying.''

JACQUE BERG
AGE: 25
OCCUPATION: Medical device sales rep
HOMETOWN: Santa Barbara, CA
JACQUE SAYS: ''It's kind of one of my natural instincts to flirt. I don't mean to. That's actually going to be something I watch, because I don't want a target to be on my back from the other girls.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''I think Jacque will be a bit of a dark horse. I don't think she'll be a leader. I think she'll use her looks and her charm to get in with the right guy and hope that she can ride with that guy as far as she can. If Jacque gets deep into the show I think she's a legitimate threat at the challenges. She's pretty fit.''

DAN KAY
AGE: 32
OCCUPATION: Lawyer
HOMETOWN: Walpole, MA
DAN SAYS: ''My Achilles' heel in this game will most likely be trust. You have to have trust to win this game but you have to know who is untrustworthy, and that's probably the most difficult task.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''He's earnest, but he is his own worst enemy. He means well and does not know when to shut up. He's like a cocker spaniel, charming and annoying at the same time.''

SUSIE SMITH
AGE: 47
OCCUPATION: Hairdresser/assistant teacher
HOMETOWN: Charles City, IA
SUSIE SAYS: ''The first player that I see going off thinking they're gonna track an elephant or a hippo, I'm gonna kick their ass, because we don't need them coming into our camp.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''Susie is a mom, and she likes to talk. That's definitely her biggest obstacle to overcome, that she can't shut up. If I went in and played this game and got teamed up with Susie, I would be wary of her hanging in there with me, because she seems to go with the wind and doesn't even seem like she's paying attention at times.''

MARCUS LEHMAN
AGE: 28
OCCUPATION: Doctor
HOMETOWN: Atlanta, GA
MARCUS SAYS: ''In addition to trying to be charismatic and active in the challenges, I have a little additional problem, which is that from society's viewpoint I have been very successful already.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''Marcus is a physician, as he likes to remind people. And he is a true leader, an extremely bright guy. He's a hero. He is a huge threat to win the game, for sure. He has looks, he's got smarts, he's probably the fittest guy out there, so he's got a lot of things going for him.''

MICHELLE CHASE
AGE: 24
OCCUPATION: Music production assistant
HOMETOWN: Los Angeles, CA
MICHELLE SAYS: ''I will win Survivor because I'm the bombshell baller. I'm bodacious, and I outwit, and outlast, and outplay. And I need a million dollars really bad.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''Michelle is a wild card for me because I actually thought that Michelle had a good solid energy coming into the game. But she's very small and very young. I think her life experience is the big question mark. What will she do when the going gets tough?''

ROBERT ''BOB'' CROWLEY
AGE: 57
OCCUPATION: Physics teacher
HOMETOWN: South Portland, ME
BOB SAYS: ''I'm a high school teacher. I enjoy younger people. I'm not part of their group, age wise, but emotionally I'm about 12.''
JEFF PROBST SAYS: ''He's the oldest guy out there. And unfortunately, that works against people all the time, even though there's probably nobody better equipped for this game. He's probably the guy who will be the biggest asset, if they don't get foolish and vote him out.''