6 Indian-Origin Kids Among 8-Way Tie Winners Of US Spelling Bee, Unbeatable For 18 Rounds
National Spelling Bee gave up and declared an eight-way tie. Out of the eight winners six were Indian origin kids. The six boys and two girls range in age from 12 to 14 and hail from six states.
In one of the most extraordinary endings to a 94-year history of the competition, National Spelling Bee gave up and declared an eight-way tie.
Reuters
Out of the eight winners, six were Indian origin kids - Rishik Gandhasri, Sohum Sukhatankar, Abhijay Kodali, Saketh Sundar, Shruthika Padhy and Rojan Raja, along with them Erin Howard and Christopher Serrao combined to spell the final 47 words correctly over five consecutive perfect rounds.
※Champion spellers, we are now in uncharted territory,§ bee pronouncer Jacques Bailly told them in announcing the decision to allow up to eight winners.
Your first official look at our 2019 Scripps National Spelling Bee Co-Champions. Each speller will receive a Scripps Cup and $50,000 cash prize from Scripps. After 20 rounds of intensive, record-breaking competition, they're all going home as winners. #spellingbee pic.twitter.com/8nRzDAk5dc
〞 Scripps National Spelling Bee (@ScrippsBee) 31 May 2019
※We do have plenty of words remaining on our list. But we will soon run out of words that will possibly challenge you, the most phenomenal collection of super spellers in the history of this competition.§
EIGHT co-champions!
〞 ESPN (@espn) 31 May 2019
The Scripps #SpellingBee ends in an unprecedented 8-way tie after 20 rounds of words ? pic.twitter.com/7QHj2ixyjh
※We＊re throwing the dictionary at you, and, so far, you are showing the dictionary who＊s boss,§ the bee＊s pronouncer, Jacques Bailly, told the eight still remaining after 18 rounds of competition.
Dictionary loses to 2019 Scripps National Spelling Bee Co-Champs:#Speller5 Rishik Gandhasri#Speller93 Erin Howard#Speller132 Saketh Sundar#Speller307 Shruthika Padhy#Speller354 Sohum Sukhatankar#Speller407 Abhijay Kodali#Speller427 Christopher Serrao#Speller462 Rohan Raja
〞 Scripps National Spelling Bee (@ScrippsBee) 31 May 2019
The six boys and two girls range in age from 12 to 14, and hail from six states: Alabama, California, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Texas, reports Reuters.
According to the Guardian, co-champions have been declared in six previous National Spelling Bees 每 1950, 1957, 1962, 2014, 2015 and 2016 每 but never before have more than two competitors shared the title in a single year.
Indians and spelling bee go a long, long way. According to Sanjoy Chakravorty, who teaches at Temple University in Philadelphia, 'the selection of the parents who immigrated to the US is perhaps the most important factor. Many of these parents have extremely high levels of educational attainment themselves.'
He adds that its an 'immigrant's hunger for success, as individuals and as a community.' From paying for coaches and quizzing them for hours a day, an Indian parent is extremely dedicated to make their kids 'break the bee'.
For those who are more curious about the Indian love for the Bee, a documentary by flimmaker Sam Rega follows the paths of four young spellers trying to make it through the increasingly competitive field during the 2017 Bee season.
