Rome News-Tribune

‘Jeopardy!’ winner Brayden Smith suddenly dead at 24

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Brayden Smith, the 24-year-old “Jeopardy!” winner dubbed Alex Trebek’s last great champion on social media, has died suddenly.

Born in Henderson, Nevada, Smith died Feb. 5 in Las Vegas, according to his obituary published in The Las Vegas Review-Journal. No cause of death was listed.

“We are heartbroke­n to share that our dear Brayden Smith recently passed away unexpected­ly. We are so grateful that Brayden was able to live out his dream on Jeopardy,” his mom, Debbie Smith, tweeted Friday.

.In December, Smith rattled off a five-game winning streak in which he amassed more than $116,000 and was likely to qualify for the Tournament of Champions. His victory run was the final significan­t spree with Trebek — who died last November of pancreatic cancer at the age of 80 — helming the podium.

“Everybody knows he is ailing,” Smith said of Trebek during a TV interview. “To put on a brave face to go out there every day and continue to give America and the world some good cheer, especially this year, was really a testament to how great of a person he was.”

Smith graduated from UNLV in 2020 with a degree in economics. He recently interned at the Cato Institute in Washington, where he did research on criminal-justice issues, and intended to attend law school.

He was also a lover of music, film and sports, according to his obituary.

Smith’s family has establishe­d the Brayden Smith Memorial Fund in his honor to support “the educationa­l aspiration­s of southern Nevada students,” reported ETCanada.

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