WASHINGTON - How fast can fortunes change at the spelling bee? Shazam. advertisement
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When Brady Yoon got that word in the third round, he gave the judges a stunned look — and an incorrect spelling. So with the dreaded ding of the bell, the 14-year-old from Anaheim, Calif., was escorted off stage, done in by a word meaning instantaneous transformation. Plenty of others avoided having to leave so hastily, including fellow 14-year-old Aaron Ho of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., who nailed “skedaddle.” The oral competition of the 77th Scripps National Spelling Bee got off to a fast start Wednesday as 191 of the 265 spellers got their first word right. None of the children was eliminated right away. Instead, their results were combined with their scores from a 25-word written test Tuesday, which together cut the field to 94. And then came the familiar spelling bee format: One mistake, and that’s it. And then there were 46
By day’s end, 46 spellers remained for Thursday’s championship, which is expected to reach a live TV audience of hundreds of thousands of homes. All the participants were in competition for a top package of $17,000 in cash and other prizes, including $12,000 and an engraved cup from the bee itself. At least 9 million children participated in local spelling bees that led to the national finals. The point of the bee is to help children improve their vocabularies, learn spelling concepts and develop correct English usage. But for these kids and their parents, there are other factors at play — soaking in the Washington scene, taking pride in making it to the finals, enduring the increasingly tense contest. One boy even practiced words aloud on his escalator ride to the ballroom. Unabridged degree of difficulty
Some of the stumpers Wednesday were “phyllotaxy,” “triboluminescence,” “ziphioid,” “dacquoise” and “tachytely.” The spellers range in age from 9 to 15, and from grades four to eight, with most of them at the older end of that spectrum. They employed different spelling styles in standing before an audience of roughly 1,000. Some were word detectives, asking for a definition and language of origin. Others knew their word — or thought they did — and barreled right on. All spellers, no matter what their result, got a quick round of applause. The bee put the written test first this year after some spellers in earlier competitions said they could have done well on it but were finished after one jittery mistake on stage. Another change in format: For the first time, spellers face a strict time limit per word of two minutes, followed by a final 30-second period with a countdown clock. Those who don’t comply are disqualified. The bee has been grappling with how to rein in the time, knowing that each lengthy spelling erodes the concentration of other children and bee officials. © 2004 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |  | Philadelphia to air TV ads for gay travelers |
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