Fourteen-year-old Harini Logan of San Antonio, Texas, has won the 2022 Scripps National Spelling Bee after a first ever "spell-off" was required for a champion to be named in the extremely close competition.
Harini takes home $50,000 from Scripps, plus further cash prizes and reference works from Merriam-Webster and Encyclopaedia Britannica.
She beat Vikram Raju of Denver, Colorado, on Thursday after their neck-and-neck competition required a "spell-off" to decide the winner, a first in the history of the Bee. The second-place prize is $25,000.
The winning word, Scripps said, was “moorhen,” which means the female of the red grouse, because that was the one that moved her past Vikram.
They claimed the top spots in the competition that pitted spellers ages 7-15 from across the US and its territories, from as far away as Guam, for the annual Bee. This year's competition was held at National Harbour, Maryland, right outside Washington.
In the spell-off, each competitor had 90 seconds to spell as many words correctly as possible. Vikram went first and spelled 15 words correctly of the 19 he attempted.
Harini, who waited for her turn in a sound-proof area, went on to spell 21 words correctly of the 26 she attempted.
Both had the same list of words read to them, ringing a bell to signal they were ready to advance to the next word.
Most Bee contestants were middle-school age and all were required to test negative for Covid-19 to participate and were masked on stage except when actively competing.
Harini is a grade eight pupil at The Montessori School of San Antonio. She loves creative writing and plans to publish a book in high school. When she's not spelling, she plays piano, recorder and is learning the ukulele.
This was her fourth and final year as a Bee contender.
Last year, when Zaila Avant-garde correctly spelled "Murraya", a genus of plants, she became the first African American to win the prestigious competition that began in 1925.
Competitors this year included 105 girls, 128 boys and one speller who identifies as non-binary.
After 27 years of being broadcast live on the cable sports channel ESPN, this year's live show was moved to ION and Bounce, both networks owned by a Scripps subsidiary. The show's host was actor LeVar Burton.
In 2019, an eight-way tie included such mind-bending winning words as "erysipelas", a skin infection; "auslaut", the final sound in a word or syllable; "palama", webbing on the feet of aquatic birds; "pendeloque", a pear-shaped gemstone or glass pendant; "odylic", related to a hypothetical life force; "cernuous", drooping; "bougainvillea", a climbing plant; and "aiguillette", the braided ornament on military uniforms.
Agencies contributed to this report
Race card
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-3 Group 1 (PA) US$100,000 (Dirt) 2,000m
7.05pm: Meydan Classic Listed (TB) $175,000 (Turf) 1,600m
7.40pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 2,000m
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (D) 1,600m
8.50pm: Nad Al Sheba Trophy Group 2 (TB) $300,000 (T) 2,810m
9.25pm: Curlin Stakes Listed (TB) $175,000 (D) 2,000m
10pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 2,000m
10.35pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 1,400m
The National selections
6.30pm: Shahm, 7.05pm: Well Of Wisdom, 7.40pm: Lucius Tiberius, 8.15pm: Captain Von Trapp, 8.50pm: Secret Advisor, 9.25pm: George Villiers, 10pm: American Graffiti, 10.35pm: On The Warpath
Results
2.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Mezmar, Adam McLean (jockey), Ernst Oertel (trainer).
3pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 2,000m; Winner: AF Ajwad, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel.
3.30pm: Handicap (PA) Dh40,000 1,200m; Winner: Gold Silver, Sam Hitchcott, Ibrahim Aseel.
4pm: Maiden (PA) Dh40,000 1,000m; Winner: Atrash, Richard Mullen, Ana Mendez.
4.30pm: Gulf Cup Prestige (PA) Dh150,000 1,700m; Winner: AF Momtaz, Saif Al Balushi, Musabah Al Muhairi.
5pm: Handicap (TB) Dh40,000 1,200m; Winner: Al Mushtashar, Richard Mullen, Satish Seemar.
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Uefa Nations League: How it Works
The Uefa Nations League, introduced last year, has reached its final stage, to be played over five days in northern Portugal. The format of its closing tournament is compact, spread over two semi-finals, with the first, Portugal versus Switzerland in Porto on Wednesday evening, and the second, England against the Netherlands, in Guimaraes, on Thursday.
The winners of each semi will then meet at Porto’s Dragao stadium on Sunday, with the losing semi-finalists contesting a third-place play-off in Guimaraes earlier that day.
Qualifying for the final stage was via League A of the inaugural Nations League, in which the top 12 European countries according to Uefa's co-efficient seeding system were divided into four groups, the teams playing each other twice between September and November. Portugal, who finished above Italy and Poland, successfully bid to host the finals.
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Sebastian Stefan, Sebastian Morar and Claudia Pacurar
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2014
Number of employees: 36
Sector: Logistics
Raised: $2.5 million
Investors: DP World, Prime Venture Partners and family offices in Saudi Arabia and the UAE
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
RESULTS
5pm: Maiden (PA) Dh80,000 1,200m
Winner: Ferdous, Szczepan Mazur (jockey), Ibrahim Al Hadhrami (trainer)
5.30pm: Arabian Triple Crown Round-3 Group 3 (PA) Dh300,000 2,400m
Winner: Basmah, Fabrice Veron, Eric Lemartinel
6pm: UAE Arabian Derby Prestige (PA) Dh150,000 2,200m
Winner: Ihtesham, Szczepan Mazur, Ibrahim Al Hadhrami
6.30pm: Emirates Championship Group 1 (PA) Dh1,000,000 2,200m
Winner: Somoud, Patrick Cosgrave, Ahmed Al Mehairbi
7pm: Abu Dhabi Championship Group 3 (TB) Dh380,000 2,200m
Winner: GM Hopkins, Patrick Cosgrave, Jaber Ramadhan
7.30pm: Wathba Stallions Cup Conditions (PA) Dh70,000 1,600m
Winner: AF Al Bairaq, Tadhg O’Shea, Ernst Oertel
Ahmed Raza
UAE cricket captain
Age: 31
Born: Sharjah
Role: Left-arm spinner
One-day internationals: 31 matches, 35 wickets, average 31.4, economy rate 3.95
T20 internationals: 41 matches, 29 wickets, average 30.3, economy rate 6.28
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 2
Vinicius Junior (71') Mariano (90 2')
Barcelona 0
Ticket prices
General admission Dh295 (under-three free)
Buy a four-person Family & Friends ticket and pay for only three tickets, so the fourth family member is free
Buy tickets at: wbworldabudhabi.com/en/tickets
Company Profile
Company name: OneOrder
Started: October 2021
Founders: Tamer Amer and Karim Maurice
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Industry: technology, logistics
Investors: A15 and self-funded
About Takalam
Date started: early 2020
Founders: Khawla Hammad and Inas Abu Shashieh
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: HealthTech and wellness
Number of staff: 4
Funding to date: Bootstrapped