In The News: How the spelling bee became a national American sport

Quintessentially US institution sees kids battle it out to spell words such as ‘solidungulate’

The long dominance of Asian-American competitors in the US National Spelling Bee was broken by the first black winner
The long dominance of Asian-American competitors in the US National Spelling Bee was broken by the first black winner

It’s a quintessentially American institution, where kids battle it out to correctly spell ten-dollar words such as ‘querimonious’ and ‘solidungulate’.

This year, the long dominance of Asian-American competitors was broken by the first black winner, 14-year-old Zaila Avant-garde.

Documentary filmmaker Sam Rega tells Sorcha Pollak the story of the National Spelling Bee and how it reflects the nation.

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