Spelling Bee Favorite Loses Grip With Clevis

[RonJonSurfer]

Favorite gone from National Spelling Bee By JOSEPH WHITE, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Samir Patel's dream of winning the national spelling title, a goal that dominated the last five years of his life, ended in one quick moment Thursday with the word "clevis."

Spectators in the Grand Hyatt ballroom gasped as the 13-year-old Texan spelled out the word for a type fastening device as "c-l-e-v-i-c-e." The error eliminated him in the fifth round of the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Samir, considered by many to be this year's favorite, wiped away tears as he talked about it later.

"The first thing I thought was c-l-e-v-i-s, and if I had been slow and cautious like I always am, I would have got it right," he said. "But I just outsmarted myself. It was an easy word. I just made a stupid mistake."

Samir's mother appealed his dismissal, but officials rejected the appeal.

Thirty-three other spellers advanced to the sixth round at the 80th annual bee. The semifinals continued, with the winner set to be crowned Thursday night.

Several other top favorites from previous years remained in contention for the title, which comes with a $35,000 cash prize, plus a $5,000 scholarship, a $2,500 savings bond and a complete set of reference works. The day began with 59 spellers remaining from the record 286 who started the competition Wednesday.

Tia Thomas, 12, of Coarsegold, Calif., bounced on her feet and kept her arms folded behind her back as she dispatched "sagittal" (resembling an arrow), then raised both arms in triumph. Matthew Evans, 12, from Albuquerque, N.M., mastered "azotea" (a terraced roof). Both are in the bee for the fourth time.

The afternoon semifinals were televised for the 14th year by ESPN, with the finals to air on ABC in prime time for the second consecutive year.

For the third time in two days, the Kiwi accent of the representative from New Zealand threw the judges for a loop. After listening to a replay, officials still weren't sure if 13-year-old Kate Weir of Christchurch had tried to spell "jardiniere" (an ornamental plant stand) with a "g" or a "j." They finally asked her to give another word starting with the letter. When she said "giraffe," the bell sounded and she was out.

The words got tougher as the rounds progressed, and several spellers used humor when they reached the breaking point. Josiah Wright of Fleetwood, N.C., asked "Is that English?" when he heard the scientific term "ptilopod."

"They tell me it is," replied pronouncer Jacques Bailly.

Josiah spelled the word as "tylopod" and was eliminated.

Others stayed alive with a good guess.

"Wow, this is a new one," said Caroline Rouse of St. Louis upon hearing "beccafico" (a kind of bird).

Claire Zhang, 14, of Jupiter, Fla., knew something was amiss when she heard the telltale bell signal that she had misspelled "burelage" (intricate lines found on security paper). Claire had been escorted to the edge off the stage on the way to the comfort room before the judges ordered an audio replay of her spelling and, after a delay of several minutes, discovered that she had indeed spelled it flawlessly.

"Claire, you may resume your place," head judge Mary Brooks announced as the audience cheered.

[Steel2Velvet]

I saw a cool documentary that focused on "Bee parents" once on PBS America, I believe. The program followed about 6 different families from 9 months before the Bee until winning night. Some of these kids' folks make "Soccer Mom Syndrome" and "Little League Dad Disease" look mild in comparison to the pressure they put on their children.

[RonJonSurfer]

I won the public school portion of the spelling bee when I was in 5th grade. The real pressure was in the next round when I had to face the Catholic School kids. I recall standing on the stage in St. Mary's auditorium facing a sea of nuns. Believe it or not, I don't remember any of the words I had to spell that night. I know the first word was very easy, but the next one had me stammering....but I got it and gave an audible "phew!" and the nuns all cracked up. I got bounced in round three.

So somewhere in my parnet's attic is my trophy and lots of memories.

[RonJonSurfer]

Spelling bee champ is a math-whiz, too By JOSEPH WHITE, Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON - Having spelled "serrefine" to win the Scripps National Spelling Bee, Evan O'Dorney is ready to tackle an even more unusual challenge for a 13-year-old boy.

"In the fall," said his mother, Jennifer, "he'll be taking calculus."

Evan, a home-schooled eighth-grader from Danville, Calif., breezed through the competition Thursday night to become the nation's top speller. He said he knew the winning word — a noun describing small forceps — the moment the pronouncer said it, but he was more enthusiastic when he spoke about an upcoming math camp this summer and the calculus class he'll be taking at the University of California at Berkeley.

"My favorite things to do were math and music, and with the math I really like the way the numbers fit together," he said. "And with the music I like to let out ideas by composing notes — and the spelling is just a bunch of memorization."

Evan won a tense duel with Nate Gartke of Spruce Grove, Alberta, who was attempting to become the first Canadian to win the 80th annual bee. Evan and Nate went head-to-head for three rounds, matching each other's correct spellings until Nate flubbed the medical word "coryza" by adding the letter "h."

Until then, Nate had been quite the showman, waving celebrity-like to the audience after each word and basking in the cheers from a row that waved red-and-white maple leaf flags.

"I didn't know I could make it this far," said Nate, who planned to cap his week in Washington with a tour of Mount Vernon on Friday.

Evan, who tied for 14th last year, won $35,000 cash, plus a $5,000 scholarship, a $2,500 savings bond and a set of reference works. His victory came even though he wasn't able to stick to one of his superstitions: He didn't have his usual pre-competition meal of fish because chicken was served instead at the Spelling Bee dinner.

Asked if he liked the bee more now that he's won it, Evan said: "Are you saying I'm supposed to like it more? Yeah, I do a little bit."

Evan's father, Michael, is a subway train operator in the San Francisco area. His mother, Jennifer, is in charge of Evan's schooling. Jennifer said Evan's spelling prowess has given him some balance in a life that's been dominated by the love of numbers.

"I believe it's made him more well-rounded," she said.

Evan was virtually unflappable on stage. The kid who juggles balls around the room at home while his mother calls out words appeared to be in trouble only once during the finals, when he had to restart "schuhplattler" a German-based word describing a dance. At one point, Evan calmly cleaned his glasses while Nate spelled a word.

The day began with 59 spellers remaining from the record 286 who started the competition Wednesday. The field was narrowed to 15 finalists, but eight were gone after the initial round and two more faltered in the next round, leaving a fivesome of Evan, Nate, 14-year-old Joseph Henares, of Avon, Conn., 13-year-old Prateek Kohli of Westbury, N.Y., and 14-year-old Isabel Jacobson of Madison, Wis.

Joseph faltered on "aniseikonia" (a visual defect), while Prateek missed "oberek" (a Polish folk dance) and Isabel was out on "cyanophycean" (a kind of algae).

The big surprise was that perennial favorite Samir Patel wasn't around for the finals. The 13-year-old Texan, in his fifth and final bee because he can't participate once he's past the eighth grade, had the audience gasping in disbelief when he misspelled "clevis."

After placing third, 27th, second and 14th in his previous bees, Samir ended his bee career with a tie for 34th. He wiped away tears as he talked about his gaffe.

"The first thing I thought was c-l-e-v-i-s, and if I had been slow and cautious like I always am, I would have got it right," he said. "But I just outsmarted myself. It was an easy word. I just made a stupid mistake."

Samir's mother, Jyoti, appealed his dismissal, based on subtle differences in the way the word's final syllable could be pronounced. The appeal was denied.

"In the end, I think I said it right," pronouncer Jacques Bailly said. "I really wanted him to get it right, and I'm really sorry that he or his family have some questions about it."

___

On the Net:

Scripps National Spelling Bee: http://www.spellingbee.com

[TheLizard]

"The first thing I thought was c-l-e-v-i-s, and if I had been slow and cautious like I always am, I would have got it right," he said. "But I just outsmarted myself. It was an easy word. I just made a stupid mistake."

Idiot.

[RonJonSurfer]

Idiot.

Perfect, I'm still laughing..