Ohio boy eliminated from spelling bee's 2d round

WASHINGTON – Spell triskaidekaphobia. It may seem easy when you have the word written on paper in front of you. But for 265 young spellers, this is an example of the many words they had to spell without any hints last week.

In an intense 90-minute round of spelling, Anoopdeep Singh Bal, 13, of Canfield, Ohio, managed to quickly and correctly spell “litotes” the morning of June 2. Wearing a striped polo shirt and dress slacks, he remained calm as spellers around him fumbled over their words. “Litotes” means an understatement for effect.

“I just sit there and wait,” Anoopdeep said. “I am enjoying everything.”
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