| Olivia Ward | |
|---|---|
| Born | Olivia Ward Pascagoula, Mississippi |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Opera singer, manager at a plastic surgery office |
| Known for | Opera singer, The Biggest Loser Winner |
Olivia Ward (born 23 October 1975) is an American mezzo-soprano opera singer and the winner of season 11 of The Biggest Loser,[1][2][3][4] which was the fourth season of couples on the TV reality show. Olivia competed on the purple team, alongside her sister, Hannah, in which they both managed to go to the final two together. She also works as a manager at a plastic surgery office.[3]
She was born in Pascagoula, Mississippi. Her family subsequently moved to Houston, Texas, where she attended Langham Creek High School though her junior year. She spent her senior year at and graduated from Baker High School, Mobile, Alabama in 1994. Ward then earned a degree in vocal performance from the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 1998. She continued her education, earning a master's degree in voice/opera in 2002 from the New England Conservatory of Music.[1] She currently resides in New York City with her husband Ben, whom she married soon after graduating from Alabama.[5]
Ward's operatic work includes appearances with Ashlawn Highlands Opera, Chautauqua Opera, Las Vegas Opera, Mobile Opera, Nashville Opera, Nevada Opera, Music City Community Chorus’s Operalooza! and Music City Community Chorus—both in Nashville, Tennessee, and the Nashville, Virginia, and Chattanooga symphony orchestras.[6] By 2007 she had begun attracting regional operatic and orchestral attention.[1]
Ward's motivation for being on The Biggest Loser was the fact that her weight, which had climbed to over 261 pounds, combined with a diagnosis of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome, meant she would likely never have children if she didn't lose a significant amount of weight.[7] She felt her obesity was a reason she had not received many opera singing roles.[2] Her teammate was her sister Hannah Curlee,[3] who is three years younger than her. Ward won the Biggest Loser Season 11 on 24 May 2011 and Hannah placed second.[4] She is the eldest of four siblings.[5]