‘Marocain’ wins the National Spelling Bee for Vinay

Being asked to spell “marocain” to win the 2017 Scripps National Spelling Bee seemed barely a challenge for Ananya Vinay.

She had already survived 36 rounds of competition and along the way had aced the spelling of words such as “konditorei,” “heiligenschein” and “wayzgoose.” (Take your best guess at the definitions, then see the answers at the bottom. But no peeking at a dictionary — of the digital or dead-tree variety.)

Then Ananya was challenged with “marocain” — a dress fabric made with a warp of silk or rayon and a filling of other yarns. She asked for the definition, its part of speech and language of origin.

She knew if she got this correct, she would be the champion.

She looked down, paused for six seconds, repeated the word, licked her lips and spelled it slowly and deliberately.

The 12-year-old from Fresno, California, won the spelling competition Thursday night after numerous rounds against Rohan Rajeev. They were the last two standing of the initial 291 spellers.
“I just focused on my word and tried to spell it right,” she said.

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The winning word was “marocain,” a dress fabric that is made of ribbed silk or rayon and a filling of other yarns.
After she was proclaimed the champion, she rocked side-to-side, barely smiling until her dad rushed to hug her. As the rest of her family joined her, the new champ finally let her happiness show.
“It’s a like a dream come true. I am so happy right now,” she said.
Ananya was crowned the winner of the 90th Scripps National Spelling Bee held in Oxon Mill, Maryland, a suburb of the nation’s capital. She spelled 35 words correctly.
She is taking home a $40,000 grand prize and plenty of bragging rights.
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