Jeopardy! contestant with Parkinsons disease wins after missing two chances to compete over 24-year span: A longtime dream

Persistence is key on “Jeopardy!” — at least for one winner, who was finally able to fulfill his lifelong dream to participate on the show.Harvey Silikovitz, an attorney and “worldwide karaoke singer” who was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 2019, broke returning contestant Laura Faddah‘s eight-game winning streak when he appeared on the Monday, March 10 episode.But being on “Jeopardy!” meant more than winning to Silikovitz, who first auditioned for the classic game show in 2001 — and went on to miss an additional opportunity since then.“It’s been a longtime dream of mine to get here,” he told host Ken Jennings during the episode.“In 2019, I was diagnosed with Parkinson’s, but I continued chasing the dream, and now here I am.”Silikovitz joked, “I wouldn’t recommend that as a preparation strategy for doing well on the show,” as the audience erupted in laughter.

“But after living with Parkinson’s for five and a half years, it’s no longer just about wanting to do well for myself.” He shared that he wanted “to give hope and inspiration to the people who are living with chronic illnesses.”Before his episode aired, Silikovitz took to social media to share his “Jeopardy!” journey.“One of the principal reasons I travel is to learn more about the world,” he began his lengthy caption.“That same voracious curiosity led me to become immersed in the world of trivia.

While I believe that knowing stuff is an intrinsic good, I also enjoy testing my knowledge in trivia competitions of various kinds.”“Inevitably, I wanted to test myself on ‘Jeopardy!’, which has long been the gold standard of TV quiz shows,” Silikovitz said before revealing he came close to being a contestant in 2019, but fate got in the way.“And so, for many years, I have tried to become a contestant on that show.I persevered in that quest even after setbacks – like that time in March 2019 when I missed a voice-mail from a senior ca...