Son of spelling champ hopes to carry legacy

OXON HILL, Md. — The domination of the Scripps National Spelling Bee by Indian-americans has gone on long enough that a second generation has emerged.

Last year, Mira Dedhia, whose mother competed in the bee three times, finished third. This year, the first child of a former champion is competing.

Dr. Balu Natarajan, now a physician from Hinsdale, Illinois, won in 1985 by spelling “milieu,” a word that almost certainly wouldn’t be used beyond preliminary rounds today. His 12-year-old son, Atman Balakrishnan, is making his debut this year, and his ultimate goal is to equal his father’s achievement. No pressure, though.

“He does help me and try to make me work harder, because he knows that I want this,” Atman said. “If he knew that I did not want this, he would not push me.”

The bee began Tuesday with 516 spellers, by far the most in its history. The expanded field means three full days of spelling instead of two. The 50 or so spellers who make the finals will be announced Wednesday and will compete Thursday until a champion is crowned.

Natarajan was the first Indian-american to win. Another followed in 1988. Eighteen of the past 22 champions have been Indian-american.

Natarajan is on the board of the North South Foundation, a nonprofit that hosts national competitions in spelling and other subjects and has served as a training ground for nearly all the recent champions.

“It’s become now kind of a good cycle where certain Indian-americans succeed, and I think they’ve inspired others to do the same,” Natarajan said. “I have no idea what my part is in that, if any.”