B.C. Jeopardy candidate says Canadian ineligibility 'disappointing'

A B.C. woman who has been trying to get on Jeopardy for the past three years says she was disappointed by the news that Canadians are no longer eligible.

Vancouver's Chandni Kher says getting on the game show has always been one of her "bucket list" items. 

"I've grown up watching Jeopardy. It's been a part of my life. I've always wanted to be on, ever since I was a little girl," said Kher. "So for people like me ... it's a little bit disappointing."

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Fortunately for Kher, she won't be impacted by the sudden change — yet. 

The 32-year-old project manager has just made it into the contestant pool.

Last week, after an invitation from Jeopardy producers, she drove down to Seattle for auditions, which included a test, a mock game and a personality interview.

She finally qualified after three years of taking the show's annual online test.

Kher says from her research, about 100,000 people take the online test and approximately 3,000 are invited to the auditions.

Anytime within the next 18 months, producers could call her and she'll have to fly to Los Angeles — on her own dime again — to become a participant. 

If she doesn't get the call, she'll have to start the process all over again, which makes the preclusion of Canadians, as she says, "a problem." 

Media reports quote the show's producers as saying the problem is due to international laws governing how information is shared over the internet.

Kher believes it has to do with data from the online test.

"I'm hopeful that it's something that they'll sort out and I'm hoping that Alex Trebek will make it happen — because as we know, he's Canadian and he loves having Canadians on the show," Kher said.

But for now, she's optimistic about the situation, thinking it could even work to her advantage.

"If I'm one of the few Canadians in the pool right now and the pool is not being regenerated for at least a year, I'm hoping it gives me a bit of leg up and helps me get on the show," she said.

No clues yet from the show as to when, or if, this really is final Jeopardy for Canadians.