DANGER! super champion Adriana Harmeyer revealed that the show’s recording schedule had a huge impact on her stamina.
Adriana won 15 consecutive games – the 11th longest streak in history – before being defeated by Survivor alumnus Drew Basile.
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In the official Inside Jeopardy! podcast, Adriana shared her thoughts on her shocking loss to Drew, 22, on June 19.
Danger! Fans should know that the game show shoots five episodes — or a week’s worth — in one day.
The show is usually taped twice a week, but that wasn’t true for the West Lafayette, Indiana, archivist.
While their first three games were filmed in April, their last 13 games were (or three days of tape) in May, on three consecutive days.
Her defeat came on her third consecutive day of taping, which she – and even the producers – admitted was a tough hand to deal with.
‘BIG FACTOR’
In a postgame chat broadcast on the podcast, Ken Jennings mentioned the grueling schedule change following Adriana’s loss.
“I want to ask you about the possibility of fatigue,” he said.
“Viewers watch a show every day, but if we’re honest about how Jeopardy! is recorded, the last 13 games you played just 72 hours apart.
“Of course, yes,” said Adriana.
“I feel like I’m a little slower at the buzzer. My brain is taking longer to put the pieces together, yeah. Big factor.”
Later in the podcast, producer Sarah Foss interviewed Adriana at her recording and apologized for the consecutive dates of the tapes.
“One thing I want to point out to people is how many games you have played in such a short space of time.
“Playing so much Jeopardy! in a short space of time is something few people can understand.”
“It was more tiring than I expected”, replied Adriana.
“By the third day, I could feel it wearing on me a little bit.
“I just did my best to fight it off and keep going as best I could to focus on buzzer speed and keep remembering things. An unusual experience, I guess.”
Foss explained that having three consecutive days of tape was rare — and happened because the show was rushing to finish its 40th season.
“We often record two consecutive days, so many times that one of our champions has to compete in 10 consecutive games.
“There were a lot of challenges in this year’s production schedule and that meant we had longer weeks at the end.”
“I felt for you and said, ‘Oh, my God,’” Foss admitted.
“I even said to Ken, ‘Have you ever considered that the reason it took you so long was because you had summer vacation?’ He was in the middle of the race and had weeks and months off.”
“A lot of times, a lot of our returning champions, that’s the case.
“So who knows what might have happened if we had summer vacation after the second day of May?
“Who knows, but it was really impressive, and even more impressive is the level of competition you had to face. In the face of exhaustion, you had to keep bringing it.”
Regarding the loss to Drew, Adriana added: “It was a difficult game, both competitors were very strong and the game was very close.
“He (Drew) did what made sense in that Daily Double, and as soon as he made that bet, I knew if he got it wrong, but if he got it right, it could change things. .”
SHOCK WINS ADRIANA
Drew dominated her opening match against Adriana, 34, and Tekla Sauter.
Adriana was the favorite to win her 16th consecutive game, having already accumulated over $350,000.
So it came as a shock when Drew, the first Survivor contestant to compete on the game show, turned off her torch.
On Double Jeopardy!, the tribe talked about the moment when Drew found the second Daily Double and fearlessly bet $10,000.
She was unable to recover and Drew won the game on the run.
“As Alex Trebek used to say, we have a Giant Killer on our hands, rarely as giant as this one!” Ken, 50, told Drew, referring to the surprising win and his 6’6” height.
Ken confirmed that Adriana would compete in the upcoming Tournament of Champions as she looked somber about the loss, and she and Drew awkwardly shook hands.
SURVIVING IN DANGER!
Drew was on Survivor in 2023 and has since proven that his initial victory was no fluke, as he has now won four games and $75,682.
His wins made him TV news, with his third win coming from an ultra-rare shootout.
His fourth win earned him 33 correct answers, a season high for any contestant.
Some fans criticized Drew for “showing off” during his wins.
With Adriana, he jokingly responded on Final Jeopardy and raised his fists after winning the tiebreaker.
“After seeing the extremely modest Adriana, Allison et al on my screen for so long, I’m still trying to get used to Drew’s exhibitionism and pranks,” one social media user recently wrote.
“I’m not a big fan of fights in sports, but especially on game shows. I’m sure he’s a perfectly nice and very intelligent kid, but his social immaturity shows. as much as I do with other competitors”, said another.
“Poor sportsmanship,” accused a third.
A fourth said: “Drew is smart and fun to watch. Adriana is an intelligent and elegant young woman.
Drew opened up to People about his participation in the show, as his upset victory turned into a streak of its own.
“It’s a funny joke. Because I have to tell you, I’m very tall. I’m 1.90m tall, so I stand out a lot. So it’s giant in physical stature, but I hope to continue with great games to qualify for the Tournament of Champions.
“And they call me a giant on the stature of Jeopardy!, a giant of trivia killing Adriana [Harmeyer], obviously an extremely competent player with 15 wins — it’s a good start. I see great things on my Jeopardy! future. I hope I become a giant, I hope I don’t get killed.”
Drew also admitted that he plans to “stock up” on his winnings from the show and take his “girlfriend on vacation, but nothing too fancy.”
Drew and his girlfriend Mary Grace met while he was pursuing his bachelor’s degree at the University of Pennsylvania.
He is now studying for a master’s degree in English Literature at the University of Oxford, in England – they have been together for three years.
Drew was announced as Jeopardy! competitor last month, and the decision immediately drew attention.
He immediately received haters after his season of Survivor aired who dubbed him a “know-it-all.”
Drew, the youngest of his season, was kicked out of the top six but held on.
Drew would use history, philosophy, and other random topics to turn his experiences on the island and his mentality in the game into long soliloquies at Tribal Council.
“Haters called me a know-it-all,” Drew wrote on Instagram, announcing his Jeopardy! appearance. “It’s time to prove them right.”
Drew isn’t the only Jeopardy! champion with Survivor connection.
Juveria Zaheer is the older sister of Omar Zaheer, who competed on Survivor 42 in 2022.
Juveria won the Second Chance and Champions Wildcard tournament, earning $100,000.
He will be looking for five wins in Tuesday’s episode, which would guarantee him a ticket to the Tournament of Champions, just like Adriana.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
