How Faizan Zaki recovered from a stunning flub to win the National Spelling Bee

The favorite in the Scripps National Spelling Bee rebounded from a surprising error Thursday night to claim the title after 21 rounds of competition.

Faizan Zaki, 13, from Allen, Texas, flopped gleefully to the stage after he clinched the victory with “eclaircissement.”

He had charged into the word without asking for any of the clues the more cautious contestants routinely request — definition, language of origin, use in a sentence. (The word means “a clearing up of something obscure.”)

The impetuous tactic was all the more unexpected given that it had cost him big three rounds earlier. The two other remaining contestants had missed their words in Round 18, clearing Faizan’s path to victory. But presented with “commelina,” he immediately started spelling: “K-A-M …”

Realizing his error, he paused — “Oh, shoot!” — and told the judge, “Just ring the bell.”

The moment of overconfidence brought his two competitors back into play until Faizan — last year’s runner-up — spelled back-to-back words correctly.

Coming in second was Sarvadnya Kadam, a 14-year-old from Visalia, Calif.; third was Sarv Dharavane, 11, of Dunwoody, Ga.

The top Bay Area speller was Aren Lee, an eighth-grader at The King’s Academy in Sunnyvale. He was eliminated in the semifinals and finished in a tie for 36th.

Watching Faizan’s victory was Bruhat Soma, his friend who beat him in last year’s bee when a lightning round was deployed to break the tie. Of Faizan’s less-than-cautious approach, Bruhat said: “I think he cared too much about his aura.”

Faizan had a more nuanced explanation: After losing last year by not spelling as fast as his rival, he overcorrected and emphasized speed in his preparation.

But, with his shaggy hair and black hoodie, he did indeed present a cool demeanor throughout the three days of competition in Oxon Hill, Md.

“He’s crazy. He’s having a good time, and he’s doing what he loves, which is spelling,” said Sam Evans, one of his coaches.

Said Zaki Anwar, Faizan’s father: “He’s the GOAT. I actually believe that. He’s really good, man. He’s been doing it for so long, and he knows the dictionary in and out.”

As the family bounded to the stage after the trophy presentation, Zaki Anwar stopped first to shake the hand of runner-up Sarvadnya, who stood off to the side amid the hoopla. It was the Visalia teen’s last year of eligibility; Faizan has one more year.

Last year’s bee had little drama before an abrupt move to the spell-off, which was not a popular decision. This year, Scripps tweaked the competition rules, giving judges more leeway to let the competition play out before going to the tiebreaker, in which contestants spell as many words as possible in 90 seconds.

The nine finalists delivered. During one stretch, six spellers got 26 consecutive words right, and there were three perfect rounds during the finals. The last time there was a single perfect round was the infamous 2019 bee, which ended with eight co-champions, among them a San Jose boy.

Including Faizan, whose parents emigrated from southern India, 30 of the past 36 champions have been Indian American.

With the winner’s haul of $52,500 added to his second-place prize of $25,000, Faizan increased his bee earnings to $77,500. His big splurge with his winnings last year? A $1,500 Rubik’s cube with 21 squares on each side. This time, he said he’d donate a large portion to charity.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.