A New Jersey contestant is set to continue his historic run on “Jeopardy!” next week after extending his winning streak to 26 consecutive games during the Friday, April 17 broadcast.

Jamie Ding, who works for the New Jersey Housing and Mortgage Finance Agency and is originally from the Detroit area, faced competitors Tini Howard, a comic book writer from California, and Taotao Zhang, a statistician from South River, New Jersey, in the latest episode.

The game remained competitive early, but Zhang fell behind after a missed Daily Double in the second round. By Final Jeopardy, Ding held a decisive lead with $23,800, compared to Zhang’s $8,400 and Howard’s $2,800.

The Final Jeopardy clue referenced an opera whose title means “Faithful,” and all three contestants correctly answered, “What is Fidelio?” Ding wagered $6,200, bringing his total winnings for the game to $30,000 and pushing his overall earnings to $732,000.

The victory places Ding further up the show’s all-time rankings, where he now sits fifth in consecutive wins, trailing only some of the most dominant champions in the program’s history. He also continues to climb the regular-season earnings list, ranking just behind fellow New Jersey competitor Cris Pannullo.

Ding has already secured a place in the upcoming Tournament of Champions and has drawn attention both in his home state and nationally for his streak of performances. His run has included multiple high-scoring performances, including record-level Coryat scores that have drawn comparisons to former champion Ken Jennings.

Beyond the show, Ding is pursuing a law degree at Seton Hall University while continuing his full-time work in housing finance. He is also a graduate of Princeton University, where he represented the school’s colors during appearances on the program.

Public officials in New Jersey, including Gov. Mikie Sherrill, have publicly congratulated Ding during his run, highlighting his achievements as a point of state pride.

“Jeopardy!”, which has aired in its current form since 1984, removed its five-game limit for champions in 2003, allowing long streaks like Ding’s to accumulate and place contestants among the program’s all-time leaders.

Ding’s next appearance is expected in the following week’s episodes, where he will attempt to extend his streak further and continue climbing both the winnings and consecutive games leaderboards.