NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. (WKRN) — Nearly 250 whiz-kids with words traveled to a convention center just outside Washington, D.C. this week to compete for the title of the nation’s top speller at the 96th Scripps National Spelling Bee.
Even though only three of those spelling gurus are from the Volunteer State, one of them went farther than any of last year’s Tennessee competitors.
Who is competing in the 2024 Scripps National Spelling Bee?
According to theScripps National Spelling Bee, there are245 spellersthis year between the ages of 8 and 15. These spellers representall 50 states, as well as Washington, D.C.; Guam; Puerto Rico; the U.S. Virgin Islands; Germany; the Bahamas; Canada; and Ghana.
Thecompetition’s media guideshared some additional fun facts about the spellers:
- Gender:
- 141 male spellers
- 103 female spellers
- One preferred not to answer
- School type:
- 173 from public schools
- 32 from private schools
- 21 from parochial schools
- 12 from charter schools
- Seven who are homeschooled
Officials said that 65 of the 245 competitors have competed in the Scripps National Spelling Bee before, including four finalists from the 2023 bee and two finalists from 2022. In addition, 24 spellers have relatives who have competed in a combined 40 national bees.
Who is in the competition from Tennessee?
A total of three Tennessee spellers showed up at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center to compete in this year’s Scripps National Spelling Bee, according to organizers:
(Courtesy: Scripps National Spelling Bee media guide)
- Jash*t “Josh” Verma, 9, is a third grader at Farmington Elementary School in Germantown who won the spelling bee sponsored by the University of Memphis.
- “Josh is an avid reader and an aspiring astronaut. He is also an advanced blue belt martial art student and is practicing hard to reach his black belt by the end of this calendar year,” his profile on the spelling bee website said. “Playing guitar in the school club is another one of his favorite activities. He also enjoys watching television about space and playing Minecraft with his little sister because he appreciates how much creativity can be explored within the game.”
- Leila McLaurin, 14, is an eighth grader at Sacred Heart Cathedral School in Knoxville who won a spelling bee sponsored by the Tennessee Titans.
- “Leila’s hobbies and interests include singing, playing the piano, rowing, participating in Girl Scouts of America and reading books,” her spelling bee profile said. “She also loves traveling and spending time with family and friends.”
- Mina Chen, 14, is an eighth grader at Lipscomb Academy in Nashville who won a spelling bee sponsored by the Tennessee Titans.
- “Mina loves reading, folding origami, bowling, playing piano and spending time with family and friends. She competed in the high school Tennessee State Bowling Individual Championship and placed 4th in the state as an 8th grader. She loves her art class and chorus class very much and enjoys school as a whole,” her profile on the spelling be website said. “Mina spends her free time playing Minecraft with her brother and Tetris by herself, as well as reading when she gets the chance. She would like to give a shout out to her mother, father and brother for always supporting her and being a great family. Mina would also like to thank all her teachers for their encouragement and help, and her friends for also supporting her. She praises the Lord for all the things He has blessed her with.”
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Officials said seven Tennesseans — including four from Knoxville and three from Memphis — have won the Scripps National Spelling Bee since it was first held in 1925. The most recent victory for the Volunteer State was in 1995, thanks to Justin Tyler Carroll of Memphis.
Would you like a breakdown of this year’s bee?
The 2024 Scripps National Spelling Bee competition schedule is listed below, with all of the events written in Eastern Time:
| Day | Event | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Tuesday, May 28 | Preliminaries (Rounds 1-3) | 8 a.m. to 7:40 p.m. |
| Wednesday, May 29 | Quarterfinals Semifinals | 8 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. 2:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. |
| Thursday, May 30 | Finals | 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. |
In the preliminaries, officials said spellers participate in up to three consecutive rounds of oral competition — spelling, word meaning, and spelling — but if they give the wrong answer in any of the three rounds, they are eliminated.
Here is a summary of howTuesday’s preliminary segment of the 2024 competitionproceeded for the Volunteer State’s contestants, based on the bee’s results page:
- Jash*t “Josh” Verma (#200):
- Leila McLaurin (#201):
- Incorrectly spelled “oleiculture” as “oeiculture” in Round 1
- Mina Chen (#202):
By the end of the preliminaries, 148 spellers made it to Wednesday’s quarterfinals, including the Memphis speller.
During the quarterfinals, the contestants continued with the oral competition from the preliminaries, starting with spelling in Round 4. If they misspelled a word or incorrectly answered a question, they were eliminated.
A total of 89 spellers were knocked out of the competition in Round 4, but not Josh from Memphis, who correctly spelled “zygantrum,” allowing him to advance to Round 5 with 58 others.
However, Josh was eliminated in Round 5 when he incorrectly defined a “reprobate” as “a sum of money discounted from a purchase” rather than “a depraved or unprincipled person,” according to officials. When the fifth round ended, only 45 other spellers were able to move on to the sixth round.
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Follow these links to learn more about therules,prizes,live coverage, thevarious spellers, and theresults of each roundin the2024 Scripps National Spelling Bee.
