Faizan Zaki, a 13-year-old from Allen, Texas, claimed victory at the 100th Scripps National Spelling Bee on Thursday night, edging out eight other finalists to take home more than $50,000 in cash and prizes.
Zaki, last year’s runner-up and a favourite going into the competition, triumphed after a tense and dramatic final round.
The contest narrowed down to three finalists — Faizan, 11-year-old Sarv Dharavane, and 14-year-old Sarvadnya Kadam. All three initially misspelled their words, forcing an additional sudden-death round.
“It’s rare to see this level of late-round drama at the Spelling Bee,” said Paul Loeffler, the Bee’s television analyst.
In the decisive moment, Zaki correctly spelled éclaircissement, a noun meaning “a clearing up of something obscure.”
FAIZAN ZAKI FINALLY NAILED ÉCLAIRCISSEMENT FTW 🔥🙌 CONGRATS!!!
— ruletheword335 // TS 🐝 (@ruletheword335) May 30, 2025
And that's after surviving Chaldee in R20, but before that... #spellingbee pic.twitter.com/UMS8xd4ybi
Impressively, he spelled the word without asking any clarifying questions, then pumped his fists and collapsed to the floor in celebration.
“I’m really happy,” Zaki said after his win.
This year’s competition began with 243 young spellers aged 11 to 14, who advanced from local and regional bees across the United States.
The event was held at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, just outside Washington, D.C.
Next year, the competition will move to Constitution Hall in the nation’s capital.
The Scripps National Spelling Bee, first held in 1925, has crowned 110 champions due to a number of ties in recent years, including an eight-way tie in 2019.
The 100th Champion in @ScrippsBee history, Faizan Zaki 🐝
— Dallas Sports Commission (@dallas_sports) May 30, 2025
In his fourth time competing at Scripps, Faizan broke through in the championship round spelling éclaircissement to bring home the trophy🏆
Congrats Faizan, well deserved🙌#DallasBIGWins pic.twitter.com/q0CLqmBESJ
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