“The darling of the whole of France, of the whole of Algeria, but also of the whole of 93. » Konbini is full of praise for Ilyesse, one of the three finalists of “Koh-Lanta, the cursed tribe”, the last episode of which was broadcast this Tuesday, December 3 on TF1. It must be said that between his good humor, his athletic exploits (five individual victories) or even the amusing images of the production (which show him sound asleep, mouth open), the 23-year-old engineer burst the screen throughout. throughout this 26th season of the famous reality TV show.
But another particularity of the young adventurer, who finished on the third step of the podium after his defeat in the legendary pole event, has made many viewers react in recent weeks: his promotion of Islam.
Halal prayers and menus
From his first to his last appearance, the native of 93 appeared with long black shorts covering his “awra”, that is to say the part of the body (located between the navel and the knees for men ) that Muslims must hide to respect dogma. On social networksthe candidate does not hesitate, between two posts to denounce the “genocide” in Gaza, to advertise this garment “which combines modesty and aesthetics” (in short, a masculine burkini) to its tens of thousands of subscribers…
In addition to “Hamdoullah” (thanks to Allah) punctuating his exploits, Ilyesse also rejoiced at not having failed in his religious practice during his journey. “The one who woke me up every morning so I could pray was Jacques”he explained on X, thanking his teammate from the yellow team and muezzin for a few weeks. According to the person concerned, even the Koh-Lanta teams adapted for the occasion by offering him… 100% halal dishes after his victories in the comfort tests.
At the end of the final, Ilyesse published a long message reflecting on his adventure, and in particular on this aspect. “I also tried to represent my faith as best as possible. As a Muslim, I wanted to show that Islam is a religion of peace, respect and sharing. he elaborated. A few weeks earlier, in the face of criticism, the same person mocked: “Tonight, it will further traumatize two or three racists. »
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Corsican regionalism
Less ostentatious but just as unusual, this season of Koh-Lanta also saw political demands brought to the camp. The winner of the show, Thibault, has repeatedly highlighted his ecological sensitivity through his profession as a farmer, but also his attachment to his native land, Corsica. « Vittoria [victoire] », for example, he exclaimed after winning the orienteering race, while some 400 people demonstrated on the island, as recently as December 1, to defend their regional language.
The adventurer, praised in particular for his qualities as a fisherman during the adventure, promised to use his check for 100,000 euros to travel with his daughters and, above all, to develop his organic farm in order to make it a real place of agrotourism “eco-responsible”. Her opponent Charlotte, who came first (after more than 2h30) in the pole competition, had another project in the event of victory during the final vote: to put her winnings to the benefit of an association helping “unaccompanied minors” – of which there are thousands in France and whose care cost the State two billion euros in 2023.
However, it must be confessed: if they are rare (the production strives to erase them during editing), these political-religious incursions are not entirely new in the show presented by Denis Brogniart: in 2015, the winner Marc Rambaud proudly claimed his Catholicism, never failing to make a little allusion to God on screen…
