‘Survivor’ Favorite Dies of Pancreatic Cancer: Hasan Yalnızoğlu

Hasan Yalnızoğlu, a Turkish dancer, model, actor and professional wrestler who was a two-time Survivor Turkey competitor, has died. Yalnızoğlu passed away on Tuesday, Oct. 15 following a battle with pancreatic cancer, according to Turkish newspaper Hürriyet. He was 50.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of our dear friend Hasan Yalnızoğlu,” TV producer Acun Ilıcalı confirmed the star’s death on X. “I ask God’s mercy, and condolences to his family and all his loved ones. May his place be heaven.”

Born in Istanbul in 1974, Yalnızoğlu joined the world of reality TV in 2015 when he competed on Survivor All Star, Season 9 of the Turkish version of the popular reality series Survivor. Part of the Volunteer team, Yalnızoğlu remained in the competition for 124 days before being voted off during the 18th week of the competition in fifth place. He returned to the competition five years later in 2020 for Season 14, Survivor Celebrities – Volunteers, where he finished second behind the season’s winner Nihat Altınkaya.

By the time he competed on Survivor, Yalnızoğlu was already well-known in the worlds of dance, modeling, and wrestling. The reality star, who graduated from Marmara University School of Physical Education and Sports and Marmara University, according to his IMDb biography, won second place in the Best Model of Turkey competition in 1997. He went on to compete in the Mister International competition in India, where he placed second in the world.

In the years that followed, Yalnızoğlu turned his attention to dance, serving as head dancer in Sultans of the Dance and Anatolian Fire dance groups. He also opened his own sports hall in Sisli in 2013, and authored a book, Learned Feelings, which was published in 2014.

Yalnızoğlu was laid to rest in a funeral ceremony held for Hasan Yalnızoğlu at the Şakirin Mosque in Üsküdar Karacaahmet Cemetery on Wednesday, Oct. 16, NTV reported. Remembering the star after the funeral, actor and presenter Kenan İmirzalıoğlu said Yalnızoğlu was “a beautiful person, a very good person… It’s too early, every death is early, but our Hasan left us very early.” Remembering him online, one fan wrote, “no matter what anyone says, Hasan Yalnızoğlu was once a funny person who made people love Survivor. May God rest his soul and rest in peace.”