Hyderabad :

A teenager with Hyderabadi roots claimed the top spot at a prestigious international spelling contest in USA on Thursday night.

Arvind Mahankali, 13, from New York, managed to correctly spell the word ‘knaidel’, which denotes a small mass of leavened dough, to win the 86th Scripps National Spelling Bee. Mahankali, who had finished third in 2011 and 2012, fought hard this time to outlast 11 finalists from across the country.

He later revealed that in the last two years, he was eliminated due to German-derived words, but this time, although the winning word was from German-derived Yiddish, he spelled it with ease, causing the audience to erupt in loud applause and cheers. “The German curse has turned into a German blessing,” he said.

Arvind’s immediate family members, who live in the US, were overjoyed at his victory. Although his relatives in Hyderabad remained unavailable for comment, sources said the mood was celebratory at their house as they watched him win the contest on live television.

Reports said that when Arvind’s name was announced as the winner, he looked up at the falling confetti and cracked his knuckles, which had come to be his signature gesture at the contest. The prize includes $30,000 in cash and other gifts, along with a huge cup-shaped trophy. Arvind, an aspiring physicist who admires Albert Einstein , said he would focus on the subject more now that he has conquered the spelling bee.

Arvind is the sixth consecutive Indian-American winner and the 11th in the past 15 years. Pranav Sivakumar from Illinois finished second, fumbling on “cyanophycean”, the word for a blue-green alga. Sriram Hathwar, 13, of New York, came third, and Amber Born, 14, of Massachusetts, stood fourth.

source: http://www.articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> US & Canada News / by TNN / June 01st, 2013