70th Scripps National Spelling Bee
| 70th Scripps National Spelling Bee | |
|---|---|
| Date | May 28–29, 1997 |
| Location | Grand Hyatt Washington in Washington, D.C. |
| Winner | Rebecca Sealfon |
| Age | 13 |
| Residence | Brooklyn, New York |
| Sponsor | New York Daily News |
| Sponsor location | New York City |
| Winning word | euonym |
| No. of contestants | 245[1] |
| Pronouncer | Alex Cameron |
| Preceded by | 69th Scripps National Spelling Bee |
| Followed by | 71st Scripps National Spelling Bee |
The 70th Scripps National Spelling Bee was held in Washington, D.C., on May 28–29, 1997, sponsored by the E.W. Scripps Company.
Thirteen-year-old Rebecca Sealfon, from Brooklyn, New York, won the competition in the 22nd round by correctly spelling the word "euonym".[2] Sealfon's exclamation while spelling her final, winning word has been called one of the most notable moments from National Spelling Bee history, a "made-for-YouTube" moment.[3][4] Sealfon was the first home-schooled student to win the Bee.[5]
Second-place went to 11-year old Prem Murthy Trivedi of Howell, New Jersey, who misspelled "cortile," and third to 13-year old Sudheer Potru of Beverly Hills, Michigan, who was unable to spell "pachymeter" in the 14th round.[6][1] Sealfon had a chance to win in the 17th round, but missed "dulcinea", causing the final two spellers to continue spelling.[7]
The first place prize was $5000 (as it had been since 1990), with $4000 for second place and $2500 for third.[1]
There were 245 spellers this year, age 9 (three spellers) to age 15. 17 were home-schooled, and about one-fourth attended private or parochial school. Six spellers were making a third appearance at a national bee, and 42 were second-time participants.[8] 116 survived into the second and final day of competition.[9][10][11]
References[edit]
- ^ a b c (30 May 1997). Home schooled 13-year old triumphs, Boca Raton News (Associated Press)
- ^ (30 May 2013). Famed champ Rebecca Sealfon turns her back on spelling bee, New York Post
- ^ Samtani, Hiten (23 May 2012). A spelling champ whose e-u-o-n-y-m should have been 'joy', WNYC-FM
- ^ Donald, Brooke (16 March 2005). Buzz surrounding spelling bees grows, Lawrence Journal-World (Associated Press)
- ^ (2 June 2000). H-O-M-E schooling spells a winner, The Washington Times
- ^ Riechmann, Deb (30 May 1997). 'Spelling is boring' but victory sweet, Free Lance-Star (Associated Press)
- ^ (29 May 1997). UPI Focus: Sealfon wins National Spelling Bee, UPI
- ^ King, Tim (26 May 1997). Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee Returns to Nation's Capital, Scripps.com (press release)
- ^ Greene, Robert (29 May 1997). Contestants dwindling as spelling bee heads into final day, Associated Press
- ^ (29 May 1997). Contestants eliminated from the National Spelling Bee, Associated Press (list of eliminated spellers and words missed,day one)
- ^ Greene, Robert (28 May 1997). Spelling bee draws 245 contestants, Associated Press
External links[edit]
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