14-year-old Indian-American Dev Shah wins the coveted US Spelling Bee
Indian-American boy Dev Shah has won the 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee competition held in the United States of America. The 14-year-old took home a $50,000 cash prize (about Rs. 42 lakh) after spelling the 11-letter word "psammophile" which means a plant or animal that thrives in sandy areas. Here is more about the teenager and the competition.
The winning moment
Shah was asked to spell "psammophile" in the 15th round. According to The New York Times, Shah instantly asked for the roots of the word. His smile indicated that he already knew the answer. Jacques A. Bailly, the pronouncer, gave the example of a cactus thriving in Arizona. Shah then spelled it correctly to win the prestigious competition.
A surreal moment for the teenager
"It's surreal, my legs are still shaking," Shah told reporters as he held the winning trophy. He is the 22nd champion of the Spelling Bee in the past 24 years with South Asian heritage. This was Shah's third attempt at the reputed competition. He previously competed in 2019 and 2021 - finishing tied for 51st and tied 76th, respectively.
About the champion
Florida-based Shah is an eighth-grade student at Morgan Fitzgerald Middle School. According to reports, Shah's father, Deval, a software engineer, immigrated to the US from India 29 years ago to get his master's degree in electrical engineering. His parents were emotional as they took the stage to receive the trophy with Shah. His mother was quoted saying that she is very proud of him.
11 million contestants participated in the competition
The Spelling Bee, which was started in 1925, is open to students through the eighth grade. This year saw about 11 million contestants from across the world taking part in the competition. Out of them, a total of 11 children entered the final round including Shah. Charlotte Walsh, also 14, from Arlington, Virginia, finished second.
Other words that Shah spelled correctly
Walsh lost to Shah for misspelling "daviely" as "daevilick." Shah correctly spelled words like "bathypitotmeter," "schistorrhachis," and "rommack" on his way to the final. Per BBC, he also correctly answered a question, saying that a magician would be most likely to practice legerdemain.
