Cindy Stowell was a quiet Jeopardy! champion who got excited about ice cream loved watching bad movies and slowly knitted her friends’ children baby blankets. Tragically, she died of cancer before her episodes of Jeopardy! ever made it on air.
Last week, it was revealed that a future Jeopardy! contestant died after she competed on the show while battling stage IV cancer. Stowell’s boyfriend, Jason Hess, confirmed on Twitter that she had died days before her episode was scheduled to air.
In the early morning hours cancer took the best friend, partner and pub trivia teammate a guy could ask for. Love you always @nanocindy pic.twitter.com/dyyUGZFlSe
— Jason (@habcous) December 5, 2016
What people didn’t know until the episode aired is that Stowell actually went on to win her episode. Stowell knocked off a 7-day champion to win $22,801 on Tuesday’s Jeopardy! Hess later revealed she had a high-grade fever during the taping that turned out to be a blood infection. She was also on painkillers.
It was a feat that even Jeopardy!‘s most decorated champion — 74-day-winner Ken Jennings — found impressive.
This is an incredible achievement on every level. https://t.co/xd1HAGfmCL
— Ken Jennings (@KenJennings) December 15, 2016
Jeopardy! released a statement about Stowell on its official website when she died last week last week.
“When Cindy Stowell taped her appearance on Jeopardy!, she had Stage 4 cancer,” Jeopardy! host Alex Trebek said. “Competing on Jeopardy! was a lifelong dream for Cindy, and we’re glad she was able to do so. Sadly, Cindy died on December 5. Our condolences and best wishes to her family and friends.”
The show noted that Stowell intended to donate her winnings to cancer research.
A science content developer from Austin, Texas, Cindy passed the online contestant test in early 2016. This summer, she received an invitation to the next round of the process: an in-person audition in Oklahoma City, Okla. She reached out to Jeopardy! contestant producer Maggie Speak with this message:
“Do you have any idea how long it typically takes between an in person interview, and the taping date? I ask because I just found out that I don’t have too much longer to live. The doctor’s best guess is about 6 months. If there is the chance that I’d be able to still tape episodes of Jeopardy! if I were selected, I’d like to do that and donate any winnings to … charities involved in cancer research. If it is unlikely that the turnaround time would be that quick, then I’d like to give up my try out spot to someone else.”
Stowell returned as the show’s new champion on Wednesday night, her name once again followed by an exclamation point.
Cindy! led with $13,500 heading into Final Jeopardy and outlasted two challengers to win an additional $8,199 when none of the contestants knew who won the Nobel Prize for literature in 1962 (John Steinbeck).
Stowell — a 2-day champion — will posthumously donate at least $31,000 to cancer research, and it was still unclear whether she won the following episode. I hope she keeps winning so we don’t lose her forever. At the very least, I’m thankful for one more day.
