Two Indian-Americans reached the finals of 90th Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday beating more than 11 million children from across the United States and other countries, reported BBC. Ananya Vinay, 12, beat 14-year-old Rohan Rajeev and became the 13th consecutive winner of Indian origin.
Both contestants went back and forth for about 45 minutes waiting for the other to spell a word incorrectly. The tense competition finally came to an end when Rajeev misspelled “marram”, and Ananya correctly spelled the word “marocain”. Marram is a type of beach grass and the word is derived from Scandinavian. Marocain is a type of crepe fabric of silk or rayon and the word is derived from French.
Vinay, who is from California, took home a cash prize of $40,000 (approximately Rs 25.7 lakh) that she plans to put into her college fund account, Reuters reported. She said she felt amazing after her victory. “It was just fun to see how far it would go.”
Vinay, the youngest in the competition, still is eligible for two more Scripps tournament, should she decide to defend her title. “It’s like a dream come true,” she said after her win according to AP. “I am so happy right now.”
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