A child prodigy from Florida took home the title of America’s best young speller after a tense tiebreaker in which he spoke a staggering 29 words in 90 seconds.
Bruhat Soma, 12, was crowned the winner of the 2024 Scripps National Spelling Bee in Baltimore on Thursday after claiming victory by correctly spelling mind-blowing words, including Hoofddorp and heautophany.
Nachschläge – a type of musical note – and ashwagandha – an herb used in medicine – also helped Soma beat 12-year-old runner-up Faizan Zaki.
The heat was only the second in the event’s 99-year history, and millions of people watched as the country’s smartest students faced off for a $50,000 prize.
Bruhat Soma, 12, was crowned winner of the 2024 Scripps National Spelling Bee in Baltimore on Thursday, claiming victory in a tense period.
To reach the finals, eight students made it through eight rounds of do-or-die spelling that eliminated 244 contestants.
The first word of Thursday’s rounds also led to the elimination of the first runner-up, as 14-year-old Rishabh Saha stumbled over the word “desmotrope.”
In the following rounds, Kirsten Santos, 13, and Shrey Parikh, 12, were eliminated from the competition for apophasis (raising an issue by pretending not to want to talk about it) and kanin (a type of boiled rice) respectively.
Zaki was able to make it to the heat by correctly spelling nicuri, a type of Brazilian palm tree, while Soma’s spelling of Hoofddorp got him into the heat.
Ananya Prassanna had the opportunity to join them in the spell, but failed to contract ‘murrina’ – a disease in Central America that kills livestock – which she spelled as marine.
At the start of the tiebreaker, the crowd reportedly chanted ‘spell-off, spell-off!’ as the two nervous contestants lined up behind a bell.
Each was given 90 seconds to spell as many words correctly as possible, and an incorrect answer did not end the timer as speed was as important as accuracy.
Both contestants were given the same list of words in the same order, and the other was removed from the stage so that he could not hear the words.
Runner-up Faizan Zaki prays before his turn in the tiebreaker, where he spoke an impressive 20 words in 90 seconds, but fell short of victory.
Both contestants shook hands and Soma (left) took the victory over Zaki (right) with a record of 29 words in 90 seconds.
A shower of confetti fell from the ceiling as Soma was crowned champion, and the 12-year-old Florida boy seemed surprised when his name was read.
Bruhat’s elated family joined Bruhat on stage, with his father describing it as “the proudest moment for the family.”
Footage of Soma’s record 29 words (the previous record was 22) showed the child prodigy sensationally spelling words that most people have never heard of.
He appeared to use his hands to imitate typing letters on a keyboard as he did so, reading words such as ‘asarotum’ (a Roman-style painted pavement) and scintillante (a musical direction).
Zaki was able to spell an impressive 20 words and, although he didn’t reach the grand prize, he won a consolation trophy and $25,000.
A shower of confetti fell from the ceiling as Soma was crowned champion, and the 12-year-old Florida boy seemed surprised when his name was read.
“I can’t describe it,” he said as he was presented with the trophy. “I’m still shaking.”
His elated family joined Bruhat on stage, with his father describing it as “the proudest moment for the family.”