29 Indian-Americans Among 49 Semi Finalists At The National Spelling Bee In The USA

Indian-Americans have dominated most of the prestigious spelling awards in the United States for several years now, and this year is no different. Out of 49 semi finalists of the annual Scripps National Spelling Bee, 25 are of the Indian origin dominating another prestigious annual event.

The semi finals which are scheduled on Friday will have all 49 contestants competing for a place in the finals of 88th Scripps National Spelling Bee.

14 years old Gokul Venkatachalam who finished third in 2014 is performing fairly well this year and is one of the best contenders for the prize. Another good contender is 13 years old Vanya Shivashankar, who is making a fifth appearance in the Spelling Bee. Vanya’s elder sister Kavya won the 2009 Championship. Sriram Hathwar and Ansun Sujoe were the joint winners in 2014.

The National Spelling Bee has been going on since 1925. I started with 9 contestants and this year it received participation from all 50 states. This year’s winner will be awarded with a cash prize of $ 35,000.

News Source: The Hindu

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