Bruhat Soma emerged as the champion of the 2024 Scripps National Spelling Bee after an intense tiebreaker with the top spellers in the competition.
The 12-year-old claimed victory on Thursday night by correctly spelling 29 words in 90 seconds during a “spell-off.”
He outperformed Faizan Zaki, who spelled 20 words in the same time frame.
Interestingly, this is the second time the Bee winner was determined through a spell-off, with Harini Logan winning the 2022 Scripps National Spelling Bee in a similar manner.
Bruhat, a seventh-grade student at Turner/Bartels K-8 School in St. Petersburg, Florida, had previously competed in the Bee in 2022 and tied for 163rd place. He returned in 2023 and tied for 74th place.
Aside from spelling, this seventh-grader enjoys playing basketball and badminton.
Faizan, also 12 years old, is a sixth-grade student at Rice Middle School in Dallas. He competed in the 2019 Scripps National Spelling Bee and tied for 370th place. Faizan made a strong comeback in 2023, tying for 21st place.
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With 245 participants, this Bee had the largest field of spellers since 2019, ranging in age from 8 to 15 years old. The event, held in National Harbor, Maryland, featured spellers from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, as well as representatives from other countries.
While all spellers walked away with unforgettable memories, the champion received $50,000 in cash, a commemorative medal, the Scripps Cup, and other prizes.
Scripps News is a subsidiary of the E.W. Scripps Company, which organizes the Bee as a not-for-profit endeavor.
