The Prize That 'The Bachelor: Winter Games' Stars Win May Be More Than Love

Although the summer fling that is Bachelor In Paradise just came to an end, ABC's answer to NBC's coverage of the Winter Olympics — The Bachelor: Winter Games — will be here before you know it. Not too much is known about the new Bachelor Nation show, but it will mix finding love with athletic events. With this physical competition element, it seems only right that what The Bachelor Winter Games stars win should be more than a rose or a profession of love. While ABC hasn't announced what the prize will be yet, Winter Games may end up looking more similar to Bachelor Pad than Paradise.

In an August interview with The Hollywood Reporter, ABC's senior vice president of reality series, Robert Mills, noted that the latest addition to the Bachelor Nation franchise was still in the early stages of development. However, he had some details about what to expect from The Bachelor Winter Games. "At the end of the day, it’s going to be about finding love again. It will have some of the Bachelor Pad DNA, in that there is going to be a competition element," Mills said. Yes, as with all things Bachelor, love is the goal, but will contestants be guaranteed more than love if they are embarking on chilly physical challenges? Love is great and all, but is that the right reward for skiing or ice skating?

However, with Mills referencing the "competition element" of Bachelor Pad, it's not out of the realm of possibility that a financial prize will be a part of The Bachelor: Winter Games. If you've blocked out what the rules were for the doomed Bachelor Pad, the contestants had to compete in challenges to avoid being eliminated. At the end, eliminated couples would vote on which remaining couple deserved the momentary prize of $250,000. After that, the winning male and female contestants had to decide individually if they wanted to share the money with their partner or take it for themselves.

Another factor that points to love not being the sole prize are the types of contestants that Winter Games is looking for. Mills said in his Hollywood Reporter interview that they want to have contestants from the international versions of The Bachelor, citing Bachelor Japan, Bachelor Australia, Bachelor Canada, and Bachelor U.K. as examples. With Bachelor creator Mike Fleiss announcing on Twitter that Winter Games will take place in Vermont, competitors from other countries may need a bigger incentive than just love or bragging rights to travel internationally. (Although, Winter Games will surely help grow international contestants' celebrity statuses.)

Host Chris Harrison also gave a clue that there will be more to The Bachelor Winter Games than love. In a September interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Harrison named some former contestants he'd love to see on Winter Games. Along with twins Emily and Haley Ferguson, he listed Ryan Sutter. The winner of the first season of The Bachelorette was drafted in the NFL (E! noted his professional football career ended because of injuries), was a firefighter in Colorado, and competed in American Ninja Warrior, so obviously, he'd be a great choice to join Winter Games. However, he's still very much married to the first Bachelorette, Trista Sutter.

With Ryan and Trista being one of the greatest success stories of Bachelor Nation, Ryan would need a reason to sign onto Winter Games beyond love since he's already got it. And even non-married Bachelor celebrities want to make money for their time. Although contestants on regular seasons of The Bachelor or The Bachelorette don't get paid unless they are the Bachelor or Bachelorette, Bachelor in Paradise stars do get paid. With Winter Games sounding more intense than dating at a Mexican resort, there's a chance that the contestants of this new series will walk away with more than just another person's hand in theirs. And if The Bachelor Winter Games doesn't want to award a cash prize, you can never go wrong with a gold medal.