Jeopardy! contestant Joe Velasco says he's 'lucky to be alive' from horrible near-death accide

May 22, 2024

blog

A JEOPARDY! contestant has won Tuesday's episode and won over fans after revealing he's just grateful to be alive.

Joe Velasco bravely spoke about an ice skating accident that nearly took his life before he appeared on the game show.

Former champion Ken, 49, is hosting a two-and-a-half-month Champions Wildcard Tournament.

The special kicked off last Monday, inviting back one, two, and three-time winners from Season 37 and 38.

Joe, a director of customer care originally from La Mirada, California, faced Robert Kaine, an editor from Los Angeles, California, and Morgan Briles, a librarian from Norman, Oklahoma

Ken asked Joe during the interview segment how: “Your original show was the anniversary of something that happened to you. What was it?”

'WORST DAY OF MY LIFE'

Joe revealed that his one-time win in 2020: “Was actually the 17-year anniversary to the day of a horrible figure skating accident that I had.

“[I’m a] former figure skater.”

“That almost claimed my life,” he emotionally continued.

“So it turned the worst day of my life into the best day.”

Most read in Entertainment

“And from there, I went on to do some amazing work with an organization that now provides support for Black and Brown figure skaters.”

Joe added near-tears: “So I’m just really excited for this opportunity to be back, and thank you to Jeopardy!.”

“That’s fantastic,” Ken gently replied. “I’m so happy you now have a happy anniversary to observe.”

GO JOE!

By Double Jeopardy!, Morgan had $11,300, Joe $3,400, and Robert $200, but Joe performed well and kept the game from being a runaway.

Scores going into Final Jeopardy! saw Morgan at $18,900, Joe at $10,200 despite a safe $2000 Daily Double, and Robert at $8,600.

Final Jeopardy! under "NEW ZEALAND" read: "Christchurch is the largest city in this New Zealand region that shares its name with an English city known for a church begun in the 6th century."

Only Joe was correct with "Canterbury," adding a huge $10,000 to leap to $20,200.

He went from a far second place to the winner in quite the upset, looking so grateful.

One fan wrote on Reddit: "I thought Joe had blown it with his conservative $2,000 wager on DD3 and Morgan with a commanding lead. Fortunately for him, Robert closed strongly to prevent Morgan from the runaway."

Another sweetly penned: "So excited for Joe and his charity for brown and black figure skaters."

'NEARLY BLED OUT ON THE ICE'

Joe wrote on Instagram in 2020, sharing a selfie of the scar on his wrist and describing what happened [seen above].

He wrote: “My Jeopardy! win on Sept 17 was more significant than most realize."

“For those who know I grew up figure skating, you may have heard about a horrific accident I sustained on the ice.

“As I felt myself landing incorrectly on a difficult jump, I reached my right hand down to stop myself from falling hard.

“A lot of you know how flexible I am, but where sharp blades are involved, extreme flexibility isn't always a safe quality to have.

“Meanwhile, my left leg whipped around behind me and the left blade came to a stop IN THE BONE OF MY RIGHT WRIST.

"I severed arteries, nerves, and almost every tendon. I nearly bled out on the ice.

He continued: “They had donor blood prepared and ready for me at the hospital. After a six-hour surgery, I was saved.

“After a series of casts and months of occupational therapy, I had practically full, functional use again.

“I'll never be able to feel with my right index finger & thumb anymore, but that's no disability.

"I PHYSICALLY healed by 6 months, and was practically back to my full strength in that hand after a year.”

“The problem was healing emotionally. A serious trauma like that will always remain in the back of your mind.

"That's even after years of therapy and sports psychology. It's torture to have a hobby that you LOVE so much but have it TERRIFY you. At times the fear was CRIPPLING. Yet time heals all wounds..”

WHAT IS: CHAMPIONS WILDCARD?

Champions Wildcard has invited back a massive 108 past players and is a brand new tournament.

It includes the three winners from the Second Chance Tournament, which kicked off Season 40 last month.

Hosted by champ-turned-host Ken, it runs for a lengthy 2.5 months until December 18.

Each leg of the special will feature 27 contestants, with nine quarterfinals, three semifinals, and a two-part final where one winner will emerge.

Then, the slate will be wiped clean, and there will be three more rounds, each running for three weeks.

There will be four winners by the time Champions Wildcard ends.

Each winner gets a $100,000 grand prize and a 2023 Tournament of Champions slot.

The 2023 Tournament of Champions begins airing on December 19.

Since the Season 40 premiere last month, Jeopardy! has been pulling contestants from past seasons and using old clues and clues that were previously written but never aired.

This was a way around the writer's strike, which concluded two weeks ago.

WHERE IS: MAYIM BIALIK?

Aside from not having new contestants or regular episodes, another big change to Season 40 is the co-host arrangement.

Ken is hosting almost the entire season solo, and Mayim Bialik, 47, is not involved as it stands.

She bowed out as a member of Saf-Aftra, a big shakeup since she and Ken were tapped to split hosting after Alex Trebek's death in 2020.

"It’s not for me to personally judge anyone else’s decision [but] I am a union supporter," Mayim told Vanity Fair last month in her first public statement.

Meanwhile, Ken has faced backlash from some fans and former players for his decision to cross the picket line.

Ken has kept relatively quiet on the subject besides resharing a statement from the show’s executive producer referencing how the late Alex continued hosting during the 2007 to 2008 writers’ strike.

WHEN WILL: REGULAR EPISODES BE BACK?

Even in light of the now-resolved Hollywood Strikes, Mayim nor regular contestants will be back for quite some time.

Execs recently explained the updated timeline on the podcast Inside Jeopardy! that formerly postponed tournament play is the "Number one priority" and "We will have 16 weeks of regular episodes at the end of the year."

This 2023 ToC will be longer than in years past and feature a Season 39 Second Chance competition, Season 39 Champions Wildcard, and finally, the actual ToC.

That means we won't see new contestants until April, with just four months of regular play this year out of 11 months.

Because Mayim doesn't host tournament play, she will most likely return in April.