The second-longest winning streak in the history of "Jeopardy!" came to an end when long-running champion Amy Schneider lost in an episode that aired Wednesday.
It was Rhone Talsma, a librarian from Chicago, who defeated Schneider after raking in $29,600 in the latest game, according to NBC News.
Most of Schneider's wins had been in 2-to-1 blowouts going into Final Jeopardy. Wednesday's game was exceptionally close though. Heading into the last question, Schneider led Talsma by $27,600 to $17,600 but then she hit a blank.
Under the category "Countries of the World," the show asked which was the only nation that ends its English spelling with an "h" and is also among the world's top 10 most populous countries.
Talsma, whose quick trigger kept him staying close throughout the game, correctly answered "What is Bangladesh?" Schneider came up blank. In the end, her losing wager of $8,000 and Talsma’s winning bet of $12,000 resulted in a new champion.
Commenting on the loss, Schneider said she had no regrets. Not even the best-case scenario that she had created in her mind could come close to the nearly $1.4 million in winnings she took home. She also knew Wednesday’s game was going to be tough.
"I had thought that Rhone was going to be tough going into it," she said in a statement released by the show, according to NBC News.
"I loved hanging out with him; we had a great conversation before the taping, but I could tell that he was here to play and that he was going to be good," she continued. "I still came very close to winning, but I did feel like maybe I was slipping a little bit. And once it was clear that he was fast on the buzzer, I knew it was going to be a battle all the way."
Commenting on his victory, Talsma said he was "still in shock."
"This is my favorite show. I was so excited to be here, and I just wanted to do my best. I did not expect to be facing a 40-day champion, and I was excited to maybe see someone else slay the giant. I just really didn’t think it was going to be me, so I’m thrilled."
The new victory comes shortly after Schneider announced that she was robbed over New Year's weekend.
''Hi all! So, first off: I'm fine. But I got robbed yesterday, lost my ID, credit cards, and phone,'' Schneider said in a tweet earlier this month. ''I then couldn't really sleep last night, and have been dragging myself around all day trying to replace everything.''
In the aftermath of the robbery, Schneider added that she would refrain from using social media.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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