 Sameer
Mishra Wins 2008
Spelling Bee
A
13-year old Indian
origin boy by the
name of Sameer
Mishra walked away
the winner of the
2008 Scripps
Spelling Bee Friday.
Mishra, who resides
in Lafayette,
Indiana, took
home a cash prize of
$35,000, while
winning more than
$5,000 in other
prizes. This
was his first year
appearing in the
Spelling Bee.
His winning word -
"guerdon" - which
means "something
that one has earned
or gained" - to win
competition.
BetUS.com
had been offering
odds on the 2008
Spelling Bee with
the best payout
going to those who
bet the winning word
to have under 8.5
letters.
"Guerdon" has 7
letters and paid $11
for every $10 bet.
The male winner paid
$5 for every $7 bet.
Another favorite bet
paid even odds -
that being whether
the winner wore
glasses, which
Sameer did.
The championship
rounds of this
year's Bee were
broadcast live on
the ABC Television
Network.
The spelling
competition began
Sunday with 288
competitors who
qualified to compete
in the Scripps
National Spelling
Bee by winning
locally sponsored
bees in their home
communities. Kenneth
W. Lowe, president
and chief executive
officer of The E. W.
Scripps Company,
declared Sameer the
national champion
and awarded him the
engraved Scripps
National Spelling
Bee Championship
loving cup
immediately after
the winning word was
correctly spelled.
"Each year we host
the Scripps National
Spelling Bee to
celebrate academic
excellence and to
encourage advanced
literacy," Lowe
said. "Our
congratulations to
Sameer who survived
16 rounds of
spelling to emerge
as the 2008 national
champion. We also
extend our
congratulations to
all of the top
spellers who
participated in this
year's competition."
Betting on the
Scripps Spelling Bee
enjoys modest
interest each year.
----
Jordan Bach,
Gambling911.com
Originally published
May 31, 2008 12:02
am EST
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