“Jeopardy!” Champ Amy Schneider Mourns Death of Mom Betty Jo: 'I'm Not Ready for Her to Be Gone'

Brenton BlanchetFri, June 26, 2026 at 4:43 PM UTC

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Amy Schneider; Betty Jo SchneiderCredit: Courtesy Jeopardy Productions, Inc; Amy Schneider/Instagram -

Jeopardy! alum Amy Schneider announced the death of her mother, Betty Jo Schneider

The game-show champ shared the news on Thursday, June 25, calling her mom a "smart, stubborn, compassionate woman, who loved to learn, and to teach"

Amy has previously attributed some of her success on the show to her mom coaching her for a spelling bee growing up

Jeopardy! champion Amy Schneider announced the death of her mother, Betty Jo.

The game-show winner and author, 47, shared the news on Instagram and Facebook on Thursday, June 25, alongside an image of Betty Jo smiling next to flowers. Schneider has previously thanked Betty Jo on air for contributing to her success.

"It is with a heavy heart that I announce that my mother, Betty Jo Schneider, has passed away at the age of 83," Schneider wrote in a caption. "My mom was a smart, stubborn, compassionate woman, who loved to learn, and to teach."

Schneider added that she "wouldn’t be who I am without her inspiration, encouragement, and support."

"I’m not ready for her to be gone, but her last days were spent peacefully with her family, and she feels no more pain. I love you, Mom. RIP," she concluded.

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Schneider, who last appeared on Jeopardy! as part of the Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament in 2025, won 40 consecutive regular-season games between November 2021 and January 2022. She ranks second in consecutive games won (behind now-host Ken Jennings and his 74 victories in 2004) and ranks fourth in regular-season winnings ($1,382,800), according to the show's Leaderboard of Legends.

Amy Schneider on 'Jeopardy!'Credit: Eric McCandless/Disney via Getty

In January 2022, as Amy won her 30th consecutive game, she gave a special on-air shoutout to Betty Jo. Jeopardy! shared the heartfelt moment to its official X account.

"I would like to thank my mom," she told Jennings, now 52. "I was thinking about what it is that contributed to me being here and my success here. I was thinking about when she was helping me study for the spelling bee."

"We wouldn't just go over the words, but we'd talk about the etymology. ... That's how I know so much stuff," Amy added. "I always want to associate it with something and find interest in the fact, and not just the fact itself."

Jennings then let parents watching at home know that they're "still making a difference, decades later."

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”