Chopped Ultimate Champions Tournament Preview

Photo - Food Network

Tonight at 10pm ET/PT on the Food Network is the start of the Chopped Ultimate Champions Tournament.  The tournament has four groups of four competitors in the categories of Pros, Amateur Champs, Heroes, and Celebrities, and all of the competitors have won a previous episode of Chopped.  Each of the winners in these categories will face off against each other in the finals for a prize of $50,000 and a new car.

• The chefs in the Pro category are: Fatima Ali, Giorgio Rapicavoli, Lauren Kyles, and Tom Mckenna
• The competitors in the Amateur Champs category are: Dinah Surh, Elda Bielanski, Keith Young, and Marisa Biaggi
• The competitors in the Heroes category are: Diana Sabater, Paul Rut, Richard Fields, and Robbie Myers
• The celebrities competing are: Brandi Chastain, Carnie Wilson, Gillian Vigman, and Laila Ali

Usually the celebrities compete for a charity on Chopped, but I am not sure if that is the case for Chopped Ultimate Champions.  Most people will probably be rooting for the amateurs or heroes to win the prize for a feel good story, but it may be hard to beat the pros.

If you want to see the photos of all of the competitors to see if you recognize them, here is a slideshow with each of their pictures.