Update: Spelling bee champ is 12-year-old Ansun Sujoe, a sixth grader at Parkwood Hill Intermediate School in the Keller school district. Check out this video by the Star-Telegram's Paul Moseley.
The championship word, in the 26th round of competition, was eschewal, meaning shunning or avoidance.
Holding his trophy, he gave interviews to television stations and newspaper reporters. He wins an expenses paid trip to Washington, DC for the national spelling bee.
Second place went to Ben Benjadol, 11, of Wilshire Elementary in the Hurst-Euless-Bedford school district, a previous area spelling bee winner. (Right: ST photo: Joyce Marshall)
Many more pics by Joyce Marshall from the event on the Star-Telegram's website.
Update 11:35 a.m.
Just five spellers remain at the North Texas regional spelling bee as they head into the 16 round. Kailey Choi, the youngest speller in the contest at age 8, was eliminated in round 14.
Many parents remarked at the break that they not only did not know how to spell many of the words the students were given to spell, they didn't know what they meant.
At one point, somone's cell phone sounded and the audience was reminded to turn them off.
Original post
Returning to the stage after a break at the regional spelling bee at TCU, round 7 proved tough for several of the young spellers. The words are getting more difficult.
Officials have asked the crowd not to publish words given to the students during the competition because other regions have not held their bees yet.
Four of 14 students were eliminated during round 7. The contest started with 25 students from across North Texas who qualified for the event by winning their campus and district or area bees.
The youngest student, an eight year old from Mansfield schools, is still in the competition, powering through her words without asking for additional information, such as the word's language of origin.
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