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Amy Schneider is making a name for herself after dominating game after game of Jeopardy!, and her skills have earned her more than just money. She just made game show history as the first woman to win $1 million on Jeopardy! after playing 28 games. Her winnings stand at $1,019,600, making her the fifth millionaire in the show’s history.
Schneider Breaks Multiple Records
It’s not the only record Schneider has set on the game show. She won her 21st game on December 29, making her the record-holder for the most consecutive wins by a woman. She beat out 2014 contestant Julia Collins, who won 20 consecutive games.
Becoming a millionaire is “amazing” and “strange,” according to Schneider’s statement. “It’s not a sum of money I ever anticipated would be associated with my name. Being in the history of the game I think is something. You know, the money doesn’t feel real yet but that is something that I will never not be proud of.”
Schneider has previously shared that appearing on Jeopardy! has been a dream of hers since she was in the fifth grade. She was also voted “Most Likely to be on Jeopardy! One Day” by her eighth grade class.
Advice For ‘Jeopardy’ Hopefuls: ‘Just Be Curious’
Amy Schneider is also the first openly transgender contestant to qualify for the game show’s Tournament of Champions. She said that growing up, she didn’t see positive stories about transgender women. However, after seeing Kate Freeman, who is believed to be the first openly transgender contestant to win Jeopardy!, Schneider was “inspired…to not be afraid of trying to compete in the thing I have always loved.”
“I am so incredibly grateful,” Schneider continued. “Hopefully I can send a positive message to the nerdy trans girl who wants to be on the show too.” Her advice for those who want their own Jeopardy! success? “Just be curious,” Schneider told the New York Times. “The way to know a lot of stuff is to want to know a lot of stuff.”
She elaborated in an essay for Defector, writing, “Knowledge is a shield and a sword, a joy and a duty, and while you may never remember things quite as easily as I do, or win a bunch of games on Jeopardy!, if you have the desire, not just to know but to understand, then you will grow more and more powerful every day, and nobody will be able to stop you.”
Now that she’s made her first million on the show, Schneider is focused on unseating James Holzhauer, the professional sports bettor who won 32 consecutive games and $2.46 million in 2019.
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