Faizan triumphed over eight other talented spellers on Thursday night.
As the final moments approached, the competition narrowed down to Faizan, Sarv Dharavane, 11, and Sarvadnya Kadam, 14.
Following another round, it was just Sarvadnya and Faizan remaining.
Faizan clinched the title by successfully spelling the word “eclaircissement.”
He erupted in a celebration, pumping his fists and collapsing to the stage after delivering the last letter of the word.
A thrilling finale
Two rounds earlier, Sarvadnya Kadam and Sarv Dharavane had misspelled their words, paving the way for Faizan. However, he too misspelled his word, momentarily bringing back the other two finalists.
Returning to the microphone, Sarv made a surprising remark, “This is surprising!”
Unfortunately for Sarv, his attempt ended in another misspell, followed by a similar fate for Sarvadnya in the next round. Faizan maintained his composure, ensuring that his competitors wouldn’t regain their position at the microphone.
Faizan had previously lost to Bruhat Soma last year in a tiebreaker dubbed a “spell-off.”
His victory marked him only the fifth runner-up to reclaim the title, and the first since Sean Conley in 2001.
For more information on the Scripps National Spelling Bee, an annual event in the U.S. where students from across the nation compete to spell a sequence of increasingly challenging words, visit this link.
Edited by: Sean Sinico
