California Eighth Grader Wins Scripps National Spelling Bee With a Record-Setting 32 Words in 90 Seconds

Shrey Parikh, an eighth grader from Rancho Cucamonga, California, won the 2026 Scripps National Spelling Bee by correctly spelling a record-setting 32 words in 90 seconds during a rare lightning-round spell-off.

Watch the moment Speller 29 Shrey Parikh won the 2026 Scripps National Spelling Bee by competing in the third Spell-off in Bee history. His winning word, the final word he spelled correctly during the Spell-off, was bromocriptine."

Official Word Pronouncer Dr. Jacques Bailly, a former Spelling Bee champion, read the list of words at a rapid-fire pace, and Shrey responded in kind, easily breaking the previous record of 29 words in 90 seconds set by Bruhat Soma in 2024.

Bruhat Soma spelled 29 out of 30 correctly in his 90 seconds. The only other time we've had a spell off was when Harini Logan won with 22 out of 26.

The Three Spelling Bee FinalistsOfficial Spelling Bee Word Pronouncer

Former Champion Speller Grows Up to Become the Official Word Pronouncer For Scripps Spelling Bee

via Matt Mullenweg

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