Christina Derevjanik, a marketing manager from Stamford, Connecticut, made history on the Sept. 30 episode of “Wheel of Fortune” when she racked up $1,035,155 in prizes. In doing so, she became the biggest winner the game show has ever seen.
“It was just such a surreal experience,” she tells TODAY.com about the moment.
“I was so excited to just be able to be a contestant on the show — to then become the biggest winner of all time on ‘Wheel of Fortune’ was just the cherry on top. I couldn’t have dreamt of anything better than that.”
Derevjanik’s love for “Wheel of Fortune” started from a young age. She says she grew up watching the program and felt like she could be a “strong contestant” on the show because she always “loved wordplay” and “problem-solving” and was very skilled with “numbers, writing and communication.”
In fact, when her father learned she was chosen to be on the show after a year-long audition process, he dusted off the handheld “Wheel of Fortune” game she used to play with in the ’90s to help her prepare for the program.
“He somehow managed to save that for 25, 30 years,” she laughs.
It felt like destiny.
When it came for her to take her turn “Wheel of Fortune,” Derevjanik got off to a rocky start, failing to win either of the two toss-ups to open the show.
She caught a break when she landed on the $1 million wedge during a spin on the first puzzle. Derevjanik then landed on another wedge for a trip to Montana and before she knew it, she was winning big. She won a second trip to Tokyo and got $35,155 in cash and prizes before she made it to the bonus round where the $1 million wedge was in play.
After selecting the “Living Things” category, Derevjanik easily solved the puzzle, which was “Pack of Coyotes.” The only four letters she guessed were M, C, F and A after the show had already put T, E, S on the board.
When asked why she guessed “C,” which appeared to be a random guess, she joked that that letter held special meaning to her.
“My name starts with C, so I may be favorable to it, but I definitely had that letter in my mind,” she says.
“The other letters, I just pulled out as I saw the puzzle. But once those C’s came in and I saw where they were in the puzzle, it just came to me before the timer even started, I knew exactly what it was.”
After she guessed correctly, Seacrest then opened the prize envelope and revealed she had won the highly-coveted $1 million prize, which only three people have won on the show previously.
Her reaction? Ecstasy!
“It was pure shock, excitement, and joy,” she says of what she was feeling in the moment. “It was an out-of-body experience.”
“It just goes to show you that you should take chances. You never know what’s going to come of it. It could be life-changing,” she adds.
On the show, Derevjanik joked that she would quit her job if she won the $1 million prize. Though her wish came true, she says she is still employed and is enjoying having more “financial freedom” in her life.
“I am definitely planning to invest in a home in the next couple of years, and I have a couple of group trips coming up to Tokyo and Montana, so I’m really excited to just be able to live a little bit more freely and enjoy what life has to offer in the next five years. Then we’ll see from then on,” she says.
Her advice for anyone who feels scared taking a risk in their life?
“Just do it!” she says.
“I really believe that timing is everything. So I think that when I was able to actually be a contestant, it was the right time for me, and I believe in that,” she says.
“My advice to anyone who is thinking about taking that risk is to take it if you feel ready. Just do it. And you never know what’s going to happen. It could be the best decision of your life.”
This story first appeared on TODAY.com. More from TODAY:
