Today was the NASCC spelling in Riverside, California. Students from China and the US came together to spell words. The nighttime finals went on for 18 rounds with words like sassolin (a mineral), ephelis (freckles), and kantele (Finnish harp).

After 6 rounds of going back and forth, Shourav Dasari spelled “anisakiasis” to become the champion of the NASCC spelling bee. Anisakiasis, a parasitic infection, comes from a couple Greek roots. “Anis-” means unequal and akis, a Greek ending used as and ending for numerical adverbs. “-iasis” is suffix used to signify a medical condition or disease.

Once again, I congratulate all of the spellers who participated in the finals:

Shourav Dasari

Rutvik Gandhasri

Rishik Gandhasri

Zoe Keith

Alex Iyer

Cameron Keith

Rohan Rajeev

Shruthika Padhy

Marlene Schaff

Yo-Yo

Johnny