The Amazing Race is indeed, every bit ‘amazing’, and can well be referred to as one of the most phenomenal reality TV shows of all time.

The program is founded by Elise Doganieri and Bertram van Munster, in 2001, and has been entertaining a fan base of millions. The show bagged the Outstanding Reality TV Program Award, seven times in a row!

The Amazing Race features contestants in pairs of two people who’ve been in any sort of long-term relationship. The contestant can share any relationship from siblings and family members to lovers and wedded couples. Each season comprises of a total of eleven teams that face grueling challenges, with an aim to reach the top and hit the jackpot. The show’s presenter is Phil Keoghan, right from its first season.

Every new season begins with a fixed monetary amount being given to each team. The contestants have to manage their expenses with this set amount. They, then, set off on a race that’s typically divided into twelve legs, with each episode covering one leg.

A single leg lasts for an average of twelve hours, and culminates in a pit stop, which marks the end point for the contestants. The journey is loaded with numerous obstacles, including the Detour, Roadblock, Fast Forward, Yield, U-Turn, and Intersection, each of which has its own peculiarities to add spunk to the race.

The teams progressively dwindle over the course of the race, and trickle down to just one team in the end. The 3rd, 4th, 10th and 15th seasons were slightly different as it featured 12 teams instead of 11.

Season 8 was different in the sense that it was hailed as the ‘family edition’. It saw the team members doubling from two to four. Season 11, ‘All-Stars’ brought back teams from previous seasons of the show.