By Alicia Cruz
The Black Urban Times
When they gave him "Nisei" and "Salaam" he aced them, but when it came to Bouleversement, 12-year-old Karthik Reddy spelled it B-o-u-l-v-e-r-s-e-m-e-n-t and it cost him a trip to the semifinals.
Reddy said it was the hardest word he encountered in round one of the 50-word Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee, held at the Grand Hyatt ballroom in Washington, D.C. Six other contestants also failed to spell the word, which means "an overturning."
Reddy, Mariamma Abraham, 12, of Crossroads Middle School in South Brunswick and Jake Muldowney, 14, of Toms River Intermediate School in Beachwood correctly spelled words "salaam," "franglais" and "appestat," respectively, in the third-round, but all scored too low on a 50-word, first-round test Wednesday that was part of their total score, according to Spelling Bee officials.
All missed out on the championship prize valued at more than $40,000, but the three were amongst six exceptional students from New Jersey who qualified to compete for the national tourney.
Reddy, of Boonton, who attends the Peck School in Morristown, told the Star-Ledger by phone that he thought he did well on the test, but added that he, "made a few mistakes there, so it got me."
"I’m happy I spelled both my words right," said Reddy, who will watch the semifinals from the audience adding that he was not disappointed "because I still have next year to compete." Now the Reddy family will have time for tourist attractions in the nation’s capital.
Neetu Chandak, of Seneca Falls, New York spelled both her words correctly and became one of 48 spellers to advance to the Spelling Bee semifinals.
"My heart's, like, beating," she told the Associated Press while fanning her face with both hands. "I'm not sure if anybody can hear me. I'm thinking, 'What if I don't make it?'"
The 14-year-old aspiring architect and interior designer, has somewhat of a celebrity status among this year's spellers. She's made the nationals four times — more than anyone else in the field — and tied for eighth in 2009.
Dressed in her green blouse with glittering butterflies, she smiled her way through words like "facetious" and "hemerocallis," which means "the genus comprising the day lilies."
The spelling bee is set to continue Friday evening, with 48 of the 273 competitors between ages 8-15 that came from across the country and the world to compete in the three-day event. The champion will be crowned on national television in addition to receiving a huge trophy and more than $40,000 in cash and prizes.
The Black Urban Times
When they gave him "Nisei" and "Salaam" he aced them, but when it came to Bouleversement, 12-year-old Karthik Reddy spelled it B-o-u-l-v-e-r-s-e-m-e-n-t and it cost him a trip to the semifinals.
Reddy said it was the hardest word he encountered in round one of the 50-word Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee, held at the Grand Hyatt ballroom in Washington, D.C. Six other contestants also failed to spell the word, which means "an overturning."
Reddy, Mariamma Abraham, 12, of Crossroads Middle School in South Brunswick and Jake Muldowney, 14, of Toms River Intermediate School in Beachwood correctly spelled words "salaam," "franglais" and "appestat," respectively, in the third-round, but all scored too low on a 50-word, first-round test Wednesday that was part of their total score, according to Spelling Bee officials.
All missed out on the championship prize valued at more than $40,000, but the three were amongst six exceptional students from New Jersey who qualified to compete for the national tourney.
Reddy, of Boonton, who attends the Peck School in Morristown, told the Star-Ledger by phone that he thought he did well on the test, but added that he, "made a few mistakes there, so it got me."
"I’m happy I spelled both my words right," said Reddy, who will watch the semifinals from the audience adding that he was not disappointed "because I still have next year to compete." Now the Reddy family will have time for tourist attractions in the nation’s capital.
Neetu Chandak, of Seneca Falls, New York spelled both her words correctly and became one of 48 spellers to advance to the Spelling Bee semifinals.
"My heart's, like, beating," she told the Associated Press while fanning her face with both hands. "I'm not sure if anybody can hear me. I'm thinking, 'What if I don't make it?'"
The 14-year-old aspiring architect and interior designer, has somewhat of a celebrity status among this year's spellers. She's made the nationals four times — more than anyone else in the field — and tied for eighth in 2009.
Dressed in her green blouse with glittering butterflies, she smiled her way through words like "facetious" and "hemerocallis," which means "the genus comprising the day lilies."
The spelling bee is set to continue Friday evening, with 48 of the 273 competitors between ages 8-15 that came from across the country and the world to compete in the three-day event. The champion will be crowned on national television in addition to receiving a huge trophy and more than $40,000 in cash and prizes.
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