MARBLEHEAD - Neil Tejwani became a victim of his own success on "The Biggest Loser" last night. He got kicked off the show just before the finale by one contestant worried about Tejwani's ability to compete, and another angry at how he'd ousted a friend of hers weeks earlier.
"It's one of those things, the last quarter-mile of the marathon, and you just fall short. Is it more heartbreaking to make it to the end, or to go out at the end of the week?" Tejwani told The Salem News last night.
Tejwani lost another 10 pounds, the largest total this week, but it wasn't enough to keep him out of an elimination round. The sole survivor of the Blue Team, Tejwani's old competitors on the Black Team ganged up on him to wipe him out.
Tejwani, 25, is a Marblehead chemical engineer who started the show at 421 pounds. He'd lost some 165 pounds through the end of filming, Tejwani said - a loss of about 40 percent of his body weight.
Behind the numbers were hours of sweat, struggle and tough game play. All of that kept him in the game until the next-to-last week, but they also contributed to his losing.
Archcompetitor Bill cast the first vote for Tejwani's elimination: "I've got the most utmost respect for Hollie and for Neil. But there's one I'm going to be forced to vote for ... that could come back and keep me from winning this game." Tejwani smiled and nodded a little.
Isabeau cast the deciding vote against Tejwani, saying people, including Jez, had helped her. One week, Tejwani forced Jez's elimination in a gambit that involved gaining water weight.
"I can't forget the times people stood up for me," Isabeau said. With that, Tejwani was off the show.
Tejwani will now compete with 13 other ousted contestants for a $100,000 prize, which will go to the person who lost the highest percentage of body weight since the show's beginning. He'll also be featured on an episode of Ellen DeGeneres' television show, expected to air early next week.
Are you disappointed in Bill or Isabeau's gameplay? "I understand it's their play. They definitely just edged me out this week. It's not about who's having a good week and who's having a bad week. It's about who's having a good week and who's having a great week."
You're going to be on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show"? "That's a pretty good consolation price for not making it to the finals."
"It's one of those things, the last quarter-mile of the marathon, and you just fall short. Is it more heartbreaking to make it to the end, or to go out at the end of the week?" Tejwani told The Salem News last night.
Tejwani lost another 10 pounds, the largest total this week, but it wasn't enough to keep him out of an elimination round. The sole survivor of the Blue Team, Tejwani's old competitors on the Black Team ganged up on him to wipe him out.
Tejwani, 25, is a Marblehead chemical engineer who started the show at 421 pounds. He'd lost some 165 pounds through the end of filming, Tejwani said - a loss of about 40 percent of his body weight.
Behind the numbers were hours of sweat, struggle and tough game play. All of that kept him in the game until the next-to-last week, but they also contributed to his losing.
Archcompetitor Bill cast the first vote for Tejwani's elimination: "I've got the most utmost respect for Hollie and for Neil. But there's one I'm going to be forced to vote for ... that could come back and keep me from winning this game." Tejwani smiled and nodded a little.
Isabeau cast the deciding vote against Tejwani, saying people, including Jez, had helped her. One week, Tejwani forced Jez's elimination in a gambit that involved gaining water weight.
"I can't forget the times people stood up for me," Isabeau said. With that, Tejwani was off the show.
Tejwani will now compete with 13 other ousted contestants for a $100,000 prize, which will go to the person who lost the highest percentage of body weight since the show's beginning. He'll also be featured on an episode of Ellen DeGeneres' television show, expected to air early next week.
Are you disappointed in Bill or Isabeau's gameplay? "I understand it's their play. They definitely just edged me out this week. It's not about who's having a good week and who's having a bad week. It's about who's having a good week and who's having a great week."
You're going to be on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show"? "That's a pretty good consolation price for not making it to the finals."
You lost the most weight and still lost. What happened? "I watch it now, too, and it still kind of boggles my mind. ... I guess it wasn't in the the cards for me. What are you going to do?"
So now you go for $100,000? "I still want to validate being 'The Biggest Loser' when I get on the scale.
"You don't go on 'The Biggest Loser' to make money. You go on 'The Price is Right' if you want a paycheck."
What's this been like? "My goal to the finale is to have a lot of jaws drop" with the scale of his weight loss. "I've definitely given it everything I have in the last eight months of this experience."
Tale of the scale
Tejwani's starting weight: 421 pounds
Week 1: Lost 22 pounds
Week 2: Lost 10 pounds
Week 3: Lost 3 pounds
Week 4: Lost 11 pounds
Week 5: Lost 10 pounds
Week 6: Lost 10 pounds
Week 7: Gained 17 pounds
Week 8: Lost 33 pounds
Week 9: Lost 18 pounds
Week 10: Lost 10 pounds
Week 11: Lost 8 pounds
Week 12: Lost 5 pounds
Week 13: Lost 10 pounds
Week 14: Lost 10 pounds
Total weight loss*: 133 pounds (Tejwani has subsequently lost more weight.)
*Total includes weight loss as of the end of this week's aired competition.
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