The 2009 finals in Washington, D.C. The competition began with 293 spellers aged 9 to 15. Kavya Shivashankar from Kansas was the winner after spelling the word "Laodicean."
2009TVPGFamily, Educational, Game Show, Kids, Other
Play-along broadcast of the opening rounds of the 92nd annual finals, outside of Washington, D.C. The week began with 565 spellers from ages 7 to 15. Karthik Nemmani of McKinney, Texas, was last year's champion, with "koinonia" as his winning word.