ABC’s Jeopardy! champion Jamie Ding attacked the U.S. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in an interview reflecting on his 31-day winning streak, saying, “the federal government is going after immigrants in a way unlike anything that we’ve seen.”
“I kept hearing how it [my Jeopardy! run] was bringing people together, and I love that very much,” Ding, who won $882,605 in prize money after his 31-game winning streak came to an end earlier this week, told People.
“I’ve heard people say, ‘It’s nice to have something positive on TV!’” the Princeton graduate, who was bested by Greg Shahade during Monday’s Jeopardy! episode, added.
Ding went on to suggest to the magazine that his Jeopardy! run was extra important in uniting Americans due to him being an “immigrant” and “person of color.”
“As an immigrant and a person of color, I was able to become part of the history of an American institution,” he said.
The 33-year-old then took a shot at ICE, adding, “Jeopardy! really is an institution and America’s turning 250 years old and the federal government is going after immigrants in a way unlike anything that we’ve seen in the recent past.”
“So I hope that immigrants can be seen in a positive light, too,” Ding said.
The contestant’s run on the show is notable, given that the only Jeopardy! players to have won more consecutive games than Ding are James Holzhauer (32 games in 2019), Matt Amodio (38 games in 2021), Amy Schneider (40 games in 2022), and Ken Jennings (74 wins in 2004).
“I think my last game is unusual, because I was a super champ, but I also lost in a runaway, which I feel like is the first time that ever happened,” Ding told People of being defeated by 13,990 points in his final game on Jeopardy!.
“It being a runaway means that I got to write a goodbye message instead of nothing at all,” he added. “I wouldn’t have done that if there had even been a chance of me coming out with the victory.”
Alana Mastrangelo is a reporter for Breitbart News. You can follow her on Facebook and X at @ARmastrangelo, and on Instagram.