Shrey Parikh arrived at the Scripps National Spelling Bee carrying the weight of being a favorite, but when the final match came down to a 90-second lightning round against fellow competitor Ishaan Gupta, the 14-year-old from Rancho Cucamonga showed why the expectation was justified.
Parikh blitzed through the tiebreaker Thursday night, correctly spelling 32 words to Gupta's 25 in a performance that transformed a tense championship into a decisive victory. The winning word was "bromocriptine," a polypeptide alkaloid that mimics dopamine activity. Parikh took home a custom trophy and $52,500 in prize money.
The path to this moment included real heartbreak. Parikh finished third at nationals last year but also lost his school bee while battling a fever. That dual setback stung. "At my school bee last year, I was really dejected and just very upset," Parikh said after his win. "It didn't even sink in until the next day. I had a really tough time, but I'm glad I was able to bounce back."
Since those disappointments, Parikh has dominated the spelling circuit, winning multiple online competitions against many of the same spellers he faced this week in the nation's capital. His confidence showed in his demeanor at the microphone. Sporting a dark long-sleeve shirt and khakis, he would nod vigorously whenever he recognized a word, a tell that rarely failed him.
Ishaan Gupta, 12, from Jersey City, New Jersey, reached the finals as a seventh-grader and semi-finalist from last year's competition. He still has another year of eligibility remaining. Sarv Dharavane, a 12-year-old sixth-grader from Dunwoody, Georgia, finished third for the second consecutive year.
The competition showcased an unusually strong field of young spellers. The finalists opened the bee perfectly, going 18 for 18 through the first spelling and vocabulary rounds before Aiden Meng of Orinda, California, stumbled on "catometope" early in the second round. Two other contenders considered capable of winning it all fell to tricky word combinations: Oliver Halkett couldn't handle "Faesulae," and Zwe Spacetime struggled with "vaesite."
Parikh benefited from intensive preparation involving three coaches. Sam Evans has tutored each of the past three national champions. Sohum Sukhatankar, himself a co-champion in 2019, provided additional guidance. Vijaya Ganesh, a longtime coach and mother of former spellers, rounded out his team. The three worked with Parikh to eliminate the variables that had caused his few unexpected losses throughout his spelling career.
Parikh's father, Gaurav, reflected on the value of last year's failure. "The school bee last year was a blessing in disguise," he said. "That's very important in life to experience, you know, ups and downs. You're not going to win everything. You're going to learn how to deal with setbacks."
Evans offered his own assessment of Parikh's dedication: "Shrey's relentless. I've really never seen someone put this much effort into spelling bees and learning everything that he possibly can."
The bee moved to Constitution Hall this year, a decision that generated some controversy among competitors and families over logistical concerns. The new venue proved more intimate than previous locations, bringing the crowd closer to the action with better sight lines and more accessible seating. ESPN's Mina Kimes narrated the proceedings alongside longtime analyst Paul Loeffler. The new location lacked one traditional element: confetti for the champion's announcement. Parikh's celebration was respectful and restrained, but there was no doubt about his place atop the spelling world.
The victory adds to a notable trend at nationals. For the first time in the bee's history, both the second- and third-place finishers from the same year have gone on to win the championship. Faizan Zaki, who won last year, was the runner-up two years ago, just ahead of Parikh. Zaki and Parikh are close friends, having competed against each other frequently on the spelling circuit.
Parikh's initial reaction told the full story. "Right now I'm probably the happiest I've ever been," he said. "I'm just so happy and relieved, and just such a flood of emotions."
Author James Rodriguez: "Parikh's 32-word spell-off performance wasn't just dominant, it was a statement from someone who learned how to process defeat and come back hungrier."
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