Jeopardy! contestant Yogesh Raut is making amends for his previous outbursts as he returns for the 2024 Tournament of Champions.

Last year, the three-day winner criticized Jeopardy! as “unimportant” in a fleet of hot-button Facebook posts after his defeat.

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Jeopardy! contestant Yogesh Raut has broken his silence on his controversial statements about the game showCredit: Jeoardy

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Last year, the 3-day champ ripped the concept of Jeopardy! being the ‘Olympics of quizzing’Credit: Facebook

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He’s now returning for the Olympics of Jeopardy! – its Tournament of Champions – which he made clear is a ‘wonderful opportunity’Credit: Jeopardy!
The Tournament of Champions is now in the midst of its gripping quarterfinal matches.

On Wednesday, Yogesh is making his grand return facing fellow three-day winner Jake Dearruda and Wildcard winner Nick Cascone.

However, the decision to feature Yogesh in this prestigious tournament has left many fans bewildered.

A social media user recently questioned, “Why would Yogesh go on a show that is ‘fundamentally incompatible with true social justice’ and ‘bad for the future of quizzing’?”

Another expressed disbelief, stating, “I can NOT believe they invited him back! He went on record trashing the show! He has NO business being on the Alex Trebek stage EVER again!”

‘WONDERFUL OPPORTUNITY’

Yogesh responded to the controversy with a statement shared with the U.S. Sun.

He said: “Jeopardy is a wonderful opportunity for my peers and I to play competitively and have fun on a national quizzing stage- and I’m excited to be a part of the upcoming Tournament of Champions.”

“While I certainly still stand by the notion that Jeopardy is not – and should not – be the pinnacle of the quizzing community, I want to emphasize my respect for the game and my fellow contestants.

“Jeopardy! is just one part of the quizzing world and for elite quizzers, it’s not necessarily the end-all be-all.

“It’s a platform to compete and win money with the knowledge we have already proved ourselves to have.

“I also want to state that I have encountered immense amounts of discrimination during my time competing in quizzes all over the country, and while Jeopardy! is not the sole problem, I refuse to stay silent about the way those experiences have shaped me, in hopes that others who come after me will bravely speak out about injustices they may face.

“I hope that we will work together to end this prejudice at every level in our community—locally, regionally, and nationally.

“As I continue competing and quizzing, because I certainly do love this work, I will also continue to speak out against the bias that competitors of color face so that I can help pave the way for others from underprivileged groups who may feel afraid to voice their true feelings.”

RAUT’S RANTS

Yogesh made quite a splash before – and most certainly after – his defeat on Jeopardy! last season.

He will compete in the 2024 ToC because all three-day champions were invited in a major twist (it usually takes four wins to qualify).

The $98,000 winner used three of his four on-stage stories to brag about being a big name in the trivia world.

He claimed that he beat James Holzhauer at high school trivia, (whom he called “Jamie”), boasted of being recognized by a now-deceased contestant India Cooper, and beat host Ken Jennings, 49, at a trivia convention.

This persona didn’t go over well, nor did his fiendish buzzer technique or failure to clap for his spirited victor Katie Palumbo.

Yogesh proceeded to post online rants slamming fans, the culture of Jeopardy!, and his peers the next week.

In one Facebook post, the brief winner went long on his stint while sharing an image of an internet post that called him “arrogant.”

Yogesh lashed out against Jeopardy! in a series of angry Facebook rants
“Let’s talk here about the criticisms of my ‘sportsmanship,'” he wrote.

“You may not see me congratulate the person who beat me on camera. THAT DOESN’T MEAN I DIDN’T CONGRATULATE THEM.”

In a second Facebook post, he ripped: “If anything I’ve said has offended you … well, there’s probably a way I could have phrased it that would have hurt your feelings even more.

“And I hereby apologize to myself for not phrasing it that way.”

Yogesh continued: “Jeopardy has not nor will ever be the Olympics of quizzing. Jeopardy is not the problem, its centrality to American quizzing culture is.

“There will never be healthy quizzing culture in this country until we can learn to stop pretending Jeopardy! is important.”

He also mentioned: “Amy Schneider’s BS relating quizzing expertise to ‘privilege,'” and called out other beloved show figures like fashion recapper Lily Nelson (aka OneEclecticMom) and reporter Claire McNear.

He added that his three wins will “never top the list of my quizzing accomplishments — not even my quizzing accomplishments of 2022. It is entertaining to watch but it bears the same relationship to real quizzing that ‘Holey Moley’ does to golf.”

TOURN-ING A NEW LEAF

Yogesh has since posted sweet recaps on Facebook of each Tournament of Champions game, celebrating the highs and lows of each episode.

Recapping Hannah Wilson’s shock defeat on Tuesday, he wrote: “Both she and her wife were tons of fun to be around all week.

“And it should surprise no one that last night she texted our group chat a video of herself good-naturedly karaoke-ing to Weird Al’s ‘I Lost on Jeopardy.'”

He also shared fun insight into 21-day champ Cris Pannullo’s even more shocking defeat one game earlier.

“I hate to sound overly dramatic, but how can you not perceive the melodrama in a 3-gamer taking out the #1 seed in the tournament?

“It’s never fun to be Ned Stark post-beheading. But the true measure of Cris as a champion is the way he took his defeat like a champ.

“He fought as valiantly as he could, but once it became clear that victory wasn’t meant to be, he stuck around with words of encouragement for everyone who remained in contention and consolation for everyone who didn’t.

“He might be more naturally withdrawn in temperament than most other ToC contestants, but every word he spoke to me was wise, well-chosen, and supportive.”

A representative on behalf of Yogesh clarified that his 2023 interview segments were not his own choosing but that of producers.

Yogesh faced backlash for those interviews, and the representative noted that contestants do not choose the subject of their interviews in non-invitational episodes.

Despite the controversies, Yogesh is back in the spotlight, ready to compete and make amends for his villain edit.

The ToC consists of nine quarterfinal games, nine semifinals and a first-to three wins finale.

The victor earns $250,000, a championship belt, an invite to the next Jeopardy! Masters in May, and serious bragging rights.

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Ken Jennings hosts the ToC from February 23 until late MarchCredit: Getty