French gameshow contestant's epic 21-month winning streak finally ends

A French gameshow contestant has been dethroned after a record-breaking run of 646 wins that lasted 21 months.

Émilien, 22, made his first appearance on the 12 Coups de midi daily game show on September 25, 2023, according to a statement from French TV network TF1, which announced the end of his run on Sunday. The network has not revealed his surname.

In the show, four contestants compete in a general knowledge quiz. The winner then answers a series of questions to determine their prize pot for that day, before returning to take on a new slate of opponents the day after.

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Émilien won more than €2.5 million euros ($4.5 million) in cash and other prizes, as well as 23 cars, making him the biggest winner in French game show history, said TF1. His haul more than doubled the previous record of one million euros ($1.8 million), held by Bruno Lafourcade.

"I never expected to have the chance to stay for such a long time," said Émilien, who comes from south-west France.

"It's amazing everything that has happened. It's hard to understand."

Prior to appearing on the show, Émilien studied history at university and was aiming to become a teacher.

He then paused his studies to concentrate on his record-breaking run, which came to an end when he ran out of time to answer a question during Sunday's show.

Despite his loss to Romain, an architect, Émilien has become the world record holder for the most solo game show appearances, and the European record holder for prizes won, according to TF1.

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His run became something of a sensation in France, with his defeat drawing an average of 5 million spectators on Sunday.

TF1's 12 Coups de midi has some similarities with popular US quiz show Jeopardy, which airs every weekday for 30 minutes.

The record for the highest number of consecutive wins on Jeopardy is held by Ken Jennings, who won 74 games in a row in 2004, followed by Amy Schneider, who won 40 consecutive games in 2022.

Jennings also holds the record for the highest amount of prize money won on Jeopardy, at $US2,520,700 ($3,879,851) followed by James Holzhauer on $US2,462,216.

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