Nicholas Poulos won his school spelling bee in fifth grade. Ever since then, he’s been preparing for this moment: the Tucker seventh-grader is one of two spellers to represent Georgia in the Scripps National Spelling Bee near Washington this week.
“I was very surprised,” Nicholas said of his victory, which came after he successfully spelled fibrinogen at the Georgia Association of Educators State Spelling Bee at Georgia State University in March. “I’m hoping to do the best I can.”
Nicholas and Rachael Cundey, an eighth-grader who lives in suburban Augusta, will be the lone Georgia spellers to compete in the field of 281. The competition begins with a written test Tuesday, and ends with the winner being named live on ESPN Thursday night.
This is Nicholas’ first national spelling bee, but it’s the fifth time Rachael will spell onstage. She is one of only two spellers to return as many times.
It’s also her last year of eligibility.
“I’m really excited to go this year, but it’s also kind of sad to know I’ll never have this kind of opportunity again,” she said. “It’s fun to spell.”
Rachael finished 10th last year, just outside the finals. This year, she hopes to break into them.
But after that, she’ll move on to other things — like marching band, where she plays flute, and math team. She likes to spell and learn new words, but thinks she’ll be able to leave the bee life behind.
Nicholas, who attends Wesleyan, likes playing soccer and acting. He also competes in other academic competitions — his team went to the finals of the National Science Bowl this year, and he competed in last week’s National Geographic Bee.
But Nicholas said he studied hardest for the spelling competition. His family has quizzed him by calling out words, and he thinks he has prepared well.
“I’m really excited. I like the feeling when I get a word right,” Nicholas said. “It always stinks when you get a word wrong, but it’s always great when you get one right.”
It’s been a long drought for Georgia spellers, who have not won the competition since 1950, when Colquitt Dean spelled
meticulosity correctly to be named co-champion with an Ohio girl. Georgia had one previous winner, Mattie Lou Pollard, in 1947.
New to the spelling bee this year are questions about vocabulary, which will be added to two written rounds. It’s the first time the bee will test knowledge of meaning, and not just spelling acumen. Both Georgia spellers said they’re prepared for the challenge.
But the appeal of the bee is not all about the competition. Nicholas said he considers just getting to the bee a victory. And he expects to have a good time.
“I think it’s going to be a great opportunity to meet people interested in stuff like this,” he said.
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