Jayden Jiang, Philly’s regional champion, learned something at this year’s Scripps National Spelling Bee, which wrapped up Thursday in Maryland — and it wasn’t about trying to spell out complex words.
“I want to do it again because I enjoyed this process and learned a lot throughout this journey,” Jiang, 11, who finished tied for 41st place after competing in seven rounds, told Billy Penn, “but the anxiety while on the stage was one thing I did not like.”
The semifinal-round finish for Jiang, a fifth-grader at Girard Academic Music Program, improved on his first appearance at the competition last year, where he finished in a tie for 60th.
“I think the tournament went pretty well for me this year. At least I did better than last year,” Jiang said. “I achieved the goals that I set for myself before coming to the 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee.”
Isaac Geremew, who represented South Jersey at the bee, finished tied for 74th place after lasting five rounds and dropping out in the quarterfinals. The seventh-grader at William Davies Middle School, in Mays Landing, N.J., previously competed in 2023, when he finished tied for 23rd. His older brother, Leul, represented the region in 2024.
“I definitely had a lot more spelling experience this year, but I was disappointed when I got out in the quarterfinals. I was hoping to beat my previous ranking from 2023,” Geremew wrote in a text message.
This year’s bee, the 100th anniversary of the competition, was won in dramatic fashion after 21 rounds by last year’s runner-up, 13-year-old Faizan Zaki, from Allen, Texas. His winning word was “éclaircissement,” a French word describing clarification or enlightenment. (Yeah, we’ve never heard of this word before, either.)
Geremew said watching the final was his highlight this year.
“The event was action-packed, and I tried to spell the words myself on my dad’s phone,” he said. “There was even a comedian to entertain us during the commercial breaks.”
There were 243 spellers at this year’s national tournament. For winning, Zaki earned a $52,500 cash prize, a trophy and a medal, reference materials and subscriptions to Encyclopedia Britannica and Merriam-Webster, a News-O-Matic subscription for his school, and a $1,000 contribution that will be directed to the school of his choice.
Zaki said he will give half of his prize money to charity, according to Scripps News.
Jiang’s successful spellings included “apistogramma” (a genus of fish from South America), “oddment” (something left over) and “perpension” (careful weighing in the mind).
The word that ended his tournament: “cassowary,” the large, flightless bird native to northeastern Australia, New Guinea and other South Pacific islands.
He said he felt more prepared for the tournament compared to last year, but he was just as nervous.
His highlight was that he had more fun during the bee week and he made more friends among the other spellers.
Geremew’s path in the competition involved spelling “stevedore” (a job loading and unloading ships at a port) and “chesterfield” (a type of overcoat or sofa) perfectly. He was unable to correctly define “cameo.”
Both Jiang and Geremew qualified for the national bee through their respective regional competitions, co-hosted by WHYY and Billy Penn and held at WHYY’s studio near Independence Mall. They will be eligible to compete in next year’s Spelling Bee.
“I definitely intend to compete in next year’s bee,” Geremew said. “I also intend to spend more time studying for the spelling bee so that I can hopefully make it to the finals and beat my past rankings.”
Jiang said that he’d be back despite his nerves, thanks to the encouragement he received from his friends and the past bee champions he met during the week.
“Although I do not like to be on the stage, I think I should do it to challenge my limit,” Jiang said.
“I enjoyed how I prepared for the spelling bee. I not only studied spellings and word meanings, but also studied the concept beyond most words … This coming year, I think I’ll focus on the spelling and word meaning, as well as the pattern and roots of words.”
