Gwinnett student wins spelling bee

Fifth-grader prevails after 23-round marathon event.

After a hard-fought and suspenseful contest that ran for hours, an elementary student from Gwinnett is going to the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C.

Burnette Elementary’s Abhiram Kapaganty beat out 19 other Georgia students in the 56th annual Georgia Spelling Bee on Friday.

The 11-year-old persisted through 23 rounds, correctly spelling “schipperke” (a breed of dog) and then “wedel” (to ski in the wedeln style) to claim the title. He also gets $1,000 and paid expenses to the national bee.

“I feel really good. I’m really excited that I won,” Abhiram said after the event at Georgia State University.

To help the fifth-grader prepare, his parents quizzed him for up to five hours a day for weeks.

“He was basically breathing spelling, eating spelling,” said his mother, Voni.

Abhiram, an avid reader and Harry Potter fan who also competes in geography bees, said he will take the weekend to relax. After the trophies were pre-

sented, runner-up Jahnvi Bhagat found Abhiram so she could shake his hand. Jahnvi, who is in the eighth grade at Cobb County’s Daniell Middle, will be the winner’s alternate for the national bee. The event is May 28 through June 3.

The annual state bee is sponsored by the Georgia Association of Educators. The students came from across the state.

Richard McIntyre, GAE’s spelling bee committee chairman, has been involved for decades and was surprised by the 23-round competition. He said he couldn’t remember a state bee that went over 15 rounds.

Only a couple contestants had been eliminated by the fifth round, so McIntyre said the words would get tougher.

By the 11th round, it was down to four.

Things got interesting in the 17th round, when all three remaining contestants missed a word. They were all brought back on stage.

But eventually, it was down to Abhiram and Jahnvi.

The word that finally took the 13-year-old Jahnvi down? “Vorlage,” which is a type of skiing position.

HENRY TAYLOR / HENRY.TAYLOR@AJC.COM Abhiram Kapaganty’s mother kisses him on the cheek after the concluding 23rd round of the Georgia Spelling Bee where Abhiram came out as the victor in Atlanta. Abhiram will represent the state in the national competition.

HENRY TAYLOR PHOTOS Judges crowd around the giant dictionary they hold at the judging table that serves as the one guide/ rulebook for the entire competition in Atlanta on Friday. The judges denied an appeal after a speller was called out for an incorrect spelling.

Sanjay Bhagat celebrates and hugs his daughter Jahnvi, who placed second in the Georgia Spelling Bee.