Cindy Stowell was suffering from Stage 4 cancer when she competed on “Jeopardy!”, and passed away shortly before her episodes aired. Following the late contestant’s six-episode run, which ended on Wednesday, host Alex Trebek honoured Stowell in a touching on-the-air tribute.
“For the past six ‘Jeopardy!’ programs, you folks have been getting to know the talented champion, Cindy Stowell,” said Trebek. “Appearing on the show was the fulfillment of a lifelong ambition for that lady. What you did not know is that when we taped these programs with her a few weeks ago, she was suffering from Stage 4 cancer and sadly, on December 5, Cindy Stowell passed away.”
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Added the host: “So from all of us here at ‘Jeopardy!’, our sincere condolences to her family and her friends.”
“She really saw it as a personal challenge to test herself in this forum that she watched and loved,” her longtime boyfriend, Jason Hess, told the New York Times. “She said going in that her main objective was not to embarrass herself. Clearly, she achieved that.”
Prior to her passing, Stowell shared her own “Jeopardy!” journey in a video, posted on Facebook, in which she laid out her longtime love of the show and revealed she tried out for the show’s “teen tournament” when she was in the ninth grade, but didn’t make the cut.
During her six-episode run, Stowell won more than $120,000 — which she donated to fund cancer research — and at one point staged a dramatic comeback after trailing her competitors by $6,000. “Just when you think the odds are completely against you,” she said, “via luck, or something, things can all work out.” Watch:
