Thaindian News

New York, June 3 (THAINDIAN NEWS) The National Spelling Bee was won by 14-year-old Sukanya Roy of Wilkes-Barre, Pa. Roy is famous for writing the words invisibly onto her palms before reading it to the judges. She emerged the winner after spelling the word cymotrichous. The word means having wavy hair.

In this year’s competition, about 275 contestants from nine countries around the globe took part in the contest. In the finals, thirteen of the contestants were left standing and Roy eventually won the title and the grand prize of $30,000. The final was telecast live on ESPN on Thursday.

The contestants came from the United States, China, Bahrain, Ghana, Canada, South Korea, New Zealand, Japan and Jamaica. The contestants battled against each other in sudden death in the finals.

After winning the title, Roy told reporters that, “It’s just amazing. It’s hard to fine the words.”

The 1981 winner of the competition, Paige Pipkin Kimble who is also the director of the competition said that, “They want to be stars and this program provides a fabulous opportunity not only for children to learn and excel. But be recognized for their talents.”