Chernobyl Clue Stumps Contestants in Final Jeopardy

LOS ANGELES, CA — On Tuesday, September 30, 2025, the popular game show Jeopardy! featured a challenging Final Jeopardy round that left contestants puzzled. The category was ‘Destinations’, and the clue referred to a 2020 New York Times travel essay about a notable place.

The clue read: ‘In 2020, the Pripyat Ferris wheel earned a cameo mention in a N.Y. Times travel essay called ‘Why Would Anyone Want To Visit’ this place?’ The answer was ‘What is Chernobyl?’ which refers to the site of the infamous nuclear disaster in 1986.

Three contestants competed for the title of champion during this episode. They were Curtis Bogetti, a Ph.D. candidate from Kamloops, British Columbia; Hannah Gómez, a book editor from Tucson, Arizona; and Zach Knecht, a law clerk from Spring Hill, Florida.

Heading into the Final Jeopardy round, Curtis led with $26,600, followed by Zach with $15,000 and Hannah with $6,800. The high stakes of the game made the pressure palpable as they wrote their responses.

This particular episode exemplified the intensity and excitement that Jeopardy! is known for while also addressing a contemporary topic in travel and history. The Pripyat Ferris wheel continues to serve as a haunting symbol of the past.

Stay tuned for further updates as Jeopardy! continues to air new episodes, bringing more twists and turns to trivia enthusiasts and viewers alike.