
14-year-old Sukanya Roy outlasts other finalists into the 20th round - Pa. teen wins National Spelling Bee with 'cymotrichous' Finally, after 21 consecutive spellings without a miss, one of them finally flubbed a word. Eventually, the others were gone -- having heard the telltale bell of elimination -- except for 14-year-old eighth grader Sukanya Roy of South Abington Township, Pa., who took home the trophy and the more than $40000 in cash and prizes. Sukanya's winning word was cymotrichous, which relates to wavy hair. She likes hiking, rock climbing and ice skating and wants to pursue a career in international relations. She is the fourth consecutive Indian-American to win the bee and the ninth in the last 13 years, a run that began when Nupur Lala captured the crown in 1999 and was later featured in the documentary "Spellbound." Twelve-year-old Laura Newcombe of Toronto finished second. She was trying to become the first Canadian to win the bee. A three-time competitor at the bee, Sukanya tied for 12th in 2009 and 20th in 2010. "I went through the dictionary once or twice," she said, "and I guess some of the words really stuck."
Sukanya
Roy
National
Spelling
Bee
Champion
2011
14
Laura
Newcombe
canada
indian