Jeopardy game show host Alex Trebek is hobbling around on crutches after injuring his leg while pursuing a burglar who broke into his San Francisco hotel room and then fled with his personal property.
Trebek, in town to appear at the National Geographic World Championship at Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California, was roused from sleep in the middle of the night and took off down a hotel hallway in hot pursuit of the fleeing robber.
The 71-year-old television personality said: “It happened at 2:30 a.m., chasing a burglar down the hallway of my San Francisco hotel when my Achilles tendon ruptured and I then fell on carpet, bruising the other leg in the process. Surgery on Friday.”
According to the Mayo Clinic website, the tendon in question, a strong fibrous cord, connects the muscles in the back of the calf to the heel bone. The sudden snap or pop is accompanied by the feeling of being kicked, or even shot.
Hotel security apprehended a 56-year-old woman and she was booked on suspicion of burglary and receiving stolen property, which included cash and an arm bracelet that the show host received from his mother some 20 years ago and has worn every day since.
Twitter fans have been having some fun with the Trebek travails. One follower ‘tweeted’: “Alex Trebek was injured today chasing after a burglar! He’s 71. What is, #BALLER, for $1,000?!!”
Photo: WENN