Avijeet Randhawa, 13, an eighth grader at Corona’s Auburndale Intermediate School, is preparing for the quarterfinals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee — a year after he tied for 12th place in 2023.
Randhawa moved forward Tuesday, May 28, by correctly spelling “palynological,” which refers to the study of plant pollen, spores and microscopic plankton organisms.
Two San Bernardino County students also are taking part in this week’s competition.
Shrey Parikh, a sixth grader from Day Creek Intermediate School in Rancho Cucamonga, returned to the national stage after tying for 89th in the 2022 spelling bee. Parikh moved on to the quarterfinals by correctly spelling “abat-vent,” an architectural term used to describe slats seen in belfries that allow in light and wind.
Srikanth Satheesh Kumar, an eighth grader at Heritage Intermediate School in Fontana, is a first-time competitor at the national bee. He moved forward to the quarterfinals after correctly spelling “larigot,” an old name for a rank of metal pipes which are open, like an organ.
Both students’ schools are in the Etiwanda School District.
Randhawa qualified for the national bee in National Harbor, Maryland, by winning by the Riverside County Spelling Bee for the second time in March. His final word was “crescendo.”
A member of the Randhawa family has won all eight county bees since 2016, though the 2020 bee was canceled because of COVID-19.
Avijeet Randhawa is part of a spelling bee dynasty and is following in the footsteps of his two older sisters who competed and placed at the national level between 2016 and 2022.
Avijeet Randhawa’s sister Aisha competed in the national bee from 2016 to 2019, tying for seventh place in 2018. His other sister, Lara, competed in 2021 and reached the quarterfinals and finished 14th in 2022.
There were 245 students who took to the stage Tuesday seeking the national bee title. It was is the largest competitor pool the contest has seen since 2019. The second round of the spelling bee saw 15 competitors eliminated and 176 competitors move to the third and last round of the day.
Spellers will have to move through the third and final round of the day before competing in the quarterfinals and semifinals on Wednesday, May 29, and the finals on Thursday, May 30.
The winner will receive $50,000 from the Scripps National Spelling Bee, $2,500 and a reference library from dictionary publisher Merriam-Webster, $400 in reference works from Encyclopedia Britannica and a three-year membership to Britannica Online Premium.
The competition will take place at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center and will be aired on ION and livestreamed online at spellingbee.com.
The semifinals will air Wednesday at 5 p.m. Pacific Standard Time. The finals will be aired live Thursday, May 30, at 5 p.m. Pacific Standard Time.
City News Service contributed to this report.