VIDEO: JEOPARDY! Teen Champion Gives Shocking Final Jeopardy Answer

By: Feb. 14, 2013
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Leonard Cooper, a senior at eStem High Public Charter School in Little Rock, Ark., has defeated 14 of the sharpest teenage minds in America to win the JEOPARDY! Teen Tournament. In an episode that aired yesterday, Cooper claimed the $75,000 grand prize, while Barrett Block, a senior at Henry Clay High School in Lexington, Ky., placed second and Nilai Sarda, a freshman at The Westminster Schools in Marietta, Ga., finished third. Below, check out the teen's gutsy response to the final Jeopardy question!

A risky $18,000 wager on a Daily Double in the category of "American Literature" was the decisive moment that led to Cooper's eventual victory.

"That was my first and only Daily Double of the entire tournament and I wasn't going to waste it," said Cooper, who turns 17 today. "I knew that I was behind and that betting big would be my only chance at winning the tournament, so I went for it and made up a lot of ground."

Cooper, who has played guitar for five years, mentioned that he might use some of his winnings to fund his extracurricular musical interest.

"Most of my winnings will definitely go towards college, but I will use a bit of it for new music equipment and other miscellaneous things," said Cooper.

JEOPARDY!, the winner of a 2011 Peabody Award and 30 Emmy Awards, including the 2012 Emmy for Outstanding Game/Audience Participation Program, was inducted into the Guinness Book of World Records for the most awards won by a TV Game Show. The series is the #1-rated quiz show in syndication with 25 million viewers each week. JEOPARDY! is produced by Sony Pictures Television, a Sony Pictures Entertainment Company. It is distributed domestically by CBS Television Distribution and internationally by CBS Television International, both units of CBS Corp. For more information, please visit Jeopardy.com.



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