The Amazing Race 30 is the thirtieth season of the American reality competition show The Amazing Race. Hosted by Phil Keoghan, it featured eleven teams of two, each with a pre-existing relationship, competing in a race around the world to win US$1,000,000. This season visited four continents and ten countries and traveled over during twelve legs. Starting in New York City, racers traveled through Iceland, Belgium, Morocco, France, the Czech Republic, Zimbabwe, Bahrain, Thailand, and Hong Kong before returning to the United States and finishing in the San Francisco Bay Area. New elements introduced in this season include the Head-to-Head, where two teams competed against each other in a task, and a leg where teams swapped partners. The season premiered on CBS on January 3, 2018, and concluded on February 21, 2018.
Dating reality stars Cody Nickson and Jessica Graf (from Big Brother 19) were the winners of this season, while debaters Henry Zhang and Evan Lynyak finished in second place, and professional skiers Kristi Leskinen and Jen Hudak finished in third place.
Production Development and filming
As happened before in the twenty-fifth and twenty-seventh seasons, the show's official website announced that they would begin filming on October 1, 2017, at Washington Square Park in New York City, and invited fans to join them as they saw the new teams off. Teams left New York City and were in Iceland by the next day. On October 4, the show filmed in Antwerp, Belgium, with footage released online of racers competing in a "Frietrace" at Grote Markt. On October 8, photographs were posted to social media of teams playing pétanque at the Place des Lices in Saint-Tropez, France. On October 16, six teams were reported to be racing in Harare, Zimbabwe, with one task involving them singing at the Harare Gardens. Filming ended on October 24, 2017, in San Francisco.
This season introduced Head-to-Head competitions, where two teams had to compete directly against one another. Additionally, for the first time, teams swapped partners with another team and ran most of one leg with their swapped partners instead. This season was the first time The Amazing Race visited Bahrain.
Casting Host Phil Keoghan said that the casting focus for this season was to pick the most competitive lineup of teams in Amazing Race history.
Contestants
While the team of Big Brother houseguests Jessica Graf and Cody Nickson from the recently concluded season 19 had been announced earlier, the full cast of eleven teams was revealed on December 7, 2017. The cast included former NBA players Cedric Ceballos and Shawn Marion, IndyCar racers Conor Daly and Alexander Rossi, freestyle skiers Kristi Leskinen and Jen Hudak, Well-Strung members Trevor Wadleigh and Chris Marchant, and competitive eaters Joey Chestnut and Tim Janus.
April Gould had previously competed on season 7 and season 9 of American Ninja Warrior, but failed to make it past the qualifier for both seasons.
At the Pit Stop of Leg 5, Lucas Bocanegra proposed to Brittany Austin, who accepted.
ContestantsAgeRelationshipHometownStatus 27Models Apollo, PennsylvaniaEliminated 1st(in Reykjavík, Iceland) 26 Clermont, Florida 39Goat Yoga Moms Gilbert, ArizonaEliminated 2nd(in Antwerp, Belgium) 39 Mesa, Arizona 48Former NBA Players Maui, HawaiiEliminated 3rd(in Saint-Tropez, France) 39 Chicago, Illinois 33Competitive Eaters San Jose, CaliforniaEliminated 4th(in Les Baux-de-Provence, France) 41 New York City, New York 31Dating ViolinistsNew York City, New YorkEliminated 5th(in Prague, Czech Republic) 33 33TwinsPonchatoula, LouisianaEliminated 6th(in Harare, Zimbabwe) 33 35Dating→Engaged LifeguardsMiami Springs, FloridaEliminated 7th(in Muharraq, Bahrain) 31 26IndyCar Drivers Nevada City, CaliforniaEliminated 8th(in Hong Kong) 25 Noblesville, Indiana 36Professional Skiers Scottsdale, ArizonaThird place 30 Park City, Utah 22Dating DebatersLos Angeles, CaliforniaRunners-up 22 33Dating Reality Stars Plano, TexasWinners 28 Los Angeles, California Future appearances Cody & Jessica appeared on the premiere of Celebrity Big Brother 1, and also on the seventh episode of Big Brother 20, during which they hosted a Power of Veto competition and announced their engagement.
Results The following teams are listed with their placements in each leg. Placements are listed in finishing order. A placement with a dagger () indicates that the team was eliminated. An placement with a double-dagger () indicates that the team was the last to arrive at a Pit Stop in a non-elimination leg, and had to perform a Speed Bump task in the following leg. An italicized and underlined placement indicates that the team was the last to arrive at a Pit Stop, but there was no rest period at the Pit Stop and all teams were instructed to continue racing. There was no required Speed Bump task in the next leg. A indicates that the team used the U-Turn and a indicates the team on the receiving end of the U-Turn. A indicates that teams had to swap partners with another team for the majority of that leg. +Team placement (by leg) Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Cody & Jessica2nd1st5th2nd6th6th5th5th4th 2nd2nd1st Henry & Evan 3rd8th1st6th4th3rd3rd4th3rd1st2nd Kristi & Jen1st3rd3rd3rd2nd1st5th2nd2nd3rd3rd3rd Alex & Conor5th5th2nd1st5th4th1st3rd1st1st Lucas & Brittany7th6th8th8th1st5th1st1st Eric & Daniel 8th9th7th7th3rd2nd3rd Trevor & Chris 4th4th4th5th7th Joey & Tim6th7th6th4th Cedric & Shawn9th2nd April & Sarah 10th Dessie & Kayla Notes
Race summary
Leg 1 (United States → Iceland)
Episode 1: "You're a Champion, Prove It" (January 3, 2018) Prize: A trip for two to Santorini, Greece (awarded to Kristi & Jen) Eliminated: Dessie & Kayla Locations New York City, New York (Washington Square Park) (Starting Line) New York City → Reykjavík, Iceland Húsafell (Geitárgljúfur) Mosfellsbær (Esjumelar) Reykjavík (Ingólfstorg) Reykjavík (Reykjavíkurtjörn – Iðnaðarmannahúsið) Episode summary Teams had to find their first clue below the waterline of the fountain at Washington Square Park instructing them to fly to Reykjavík, Iceland. Once there, teams had to drive to the Geitárgljùfur, where one team member had to pull themselves along a zipline high above the Geitá river canyon until they could retrieve an Icelandic flag suspended from the line. After grabbing the flag, their partner had to pull them back to the canyon's edge so they could exchange the flag for their next clue. Teams then had to drive to Esjumelar in order to find their next clue. In this season's first Roadblock, one team member had to ride in an off-road buggy driven by a professional driver in the foothills of Mount Esja. Without taking notes, the team member had to memorize eleven Icelandic letters placed along the riverbed and that each letter had a number denoting its order in the solution. They then had to arrange tiles with those letters in the correct order to spell out their next destination – Ingólfstorg – in order to receive their next clue. After driving to Ingólfstorg, teams had to find a group of strongmen, where CrossFit Games champion Katrín Davíðsdóttir asked teams two questions about two national tonics. When teams were able to provide the correct answers, one team member had to drink a shot of Brennivín and the other a shot of Þorskalýsi (cod liver oil) in order to receive their next clue, which directed them to the Pit Stop: the Iðnaðarmannahúsið along Reykjavíkurtjörn. Additional notes At John F. Kennedy International Airport, teams had to book one of two flights to Reykjavík. The seven teams on the first flight arrived 30 minutes ahead of the remaining four teams were on the second flight. This task went unaired in the episode. Miss Iceland Ólafía Ósk Finnsdóttir appeared as the Pit Stop greeter during this leg. The race to the Pit Stop mat between Dessie & Kayla and April & Sarah was the closest finish in the history of The Amazing Race. Production had to review video footage to determine which of the two teams actually arrived on the Pit Stop mat first. Phil Keoghan stated: "We have never had a finish this close."
Leg 2 (Iceland → Netherlands → Belgium)
Episode 2: "You're the Best French Fry Ever" (January 10, 2018) Prize: each (awarded to Cody & Jessica) Eliminated: April & Sarah Locations Reykjavík (Reykjavíkurtjörn – Iðnaðarmannahúsið) Reykjavík (Kilroy Travel) Reykjavík → Amsterdam, Netherlands Amsterdam → Antwerp, Belgium Antwerp (Paleis op de Meir – The Chocolate Line) Antwerp (Willemdok) Antwerp (Plantin-Moretus Museum Diamond Quarter – ADC Building) Antwerp (Grote Markt) Episode summary At the start of this leg, teams were instructed to fly to Amsterdam, Netherlands, and then travel by train to Antwerp, Belgium. Once there, teams traveled to The Chocolate Line, where a chocolatier gave them their next clue. In this leg's Roadblock, teams had to travel to Antwerp's waterfront and find the "SkyClimb", a crane with four suspended rope ladders. One team member had to climb to the top of a free hanging ladder while a crane raised the racers upwards in order to retrieve their next clue before the ride ended. This season's first Detour was a choice between Old Print or Diamond Glint. In Old Print, teams traveled to the Plantin-Moretus Museum, where they had to arrange type pieces following the example of a provided clue, keeping in mind that the type pieces needed to be arranged as a mirror image of their clue. They then had to carry their template to be printed using a printing press and were given the message as their next clue if it printed correctly. In Diamond Glint, teams traveled to the ADC Building in the Antwerp diamond district, where they had to calculate the value of three diamonds based on their carat, color, and clarity and then add the value to the price of an unfinished necklace in order to receive their next clue. After the Detour, teams were given a clue, written in Dutch, that required them to "go to a large public place where [they would] find the city hall and Silvius Brabo", directing them to the Grote Markt. In the series' first Head-to-Head, two teams had to compete against each other in a "Frietrace". After both members of each team donned French fry costumes, each team had to nominate one member to run an obstacle course while pushing a dolly carrying eight bags of fries. A team could immediately check in at the nearby Pit Stop after winning a heat, while the losing team had to wait until the next team arrived. The team that lost the final heat was eliminated. Additional note Due to limited availability of flights, teams were given tickets on a set of pre-arranged flights to Amsterdam that they had to pick up at Kilroy Travel, but they were under no obligation to use them.
Leg 3 (Belgium → Netherlands → Morocco)
Episode 3: "It's Gonna Be a Fragrant Day" (January 17, 2018) Prize: A trip for two to Zürich, Switzerland (awarded to Henry & Evan) Locations Antwerp (Grote Markt) Antwerp → Amsterdam, Netherlands Amsterdam → Tangier, Morocco Tangier (Medina Fish Port) Tangier (Kisariate Jbala Souk) Tangier (American Legation Museum, Kasbah Museum & Tele Boutique) Tangier (Grand Socco Mamounia Palace Restaurant) Tangier (Moulay Hafid Palace) Episode summary At the start of this leg, teams were instructed to travel by train back to Amsterdam, Netherlands, and then fly to Tangier, Morocco. Once there, teams had to travel to the Medina fishing port, where they had to find a marked crate of fish, transfer the fish into a basket, and then arrange all of the fish as shown in an example in order to receive their next clue. Teams then had to travel on foot into the Medina quarter and find the Kisariate Jbala Souk, where they had to greet a merchant with the Arabic greeting of As-salām Alaykum (السَّلَامُ عَلَيْكُمْ). They then received their next clue and a Travelocity Roaming Gnome.