UNC sophomore wins 'Jeopardy!' during second appearance, advances to tournament final
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WTVD) -- A UNC sophomore came from behind in dramatic fashion to win on Jeopardy.
It was Rotimi Kukoyi's second time on Jeopardy. He was invited back to participate in a second chance tournament with other near winners.
Kukoyi was first on Jeopardy nearly six years ago when he competed in the Teen Tournament as a ninth-grader.
Now, Kukoyi is a Morehead-Cain Scholar majoring in health policy and management while minoring in biology and chemistry. He plans to become a physician.
Kukoyi's second appearance on Jeopardy aired Tuesday on ABC11.
It was an extremely competitive game with all three contestants being separated by just $2,200. Kukoyi was in second place, just $600 behind the leader.
The final Jeopardy category was The Ancient World.
The clue was: "This text helped the soul, or Ka, navigate the journey into a region called Amenti."
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Kukoyi came up with the correct response (The Book of the Dead) and wagered just enough to place himself $1 above the contestant who finished Double Jeopardy in third place and also came up with the correct response in Final Jeopardy.
It all came down to whether the contestant who finished first after the first two rounds of the game had guessed the correct response. She had not.
The victory means Kukoyi will advance to a two-day final in which he will compete for a spot in the Champions Wildcard event. Winning that event would then allow him a place in the upcoming Tournament of Champions.
