The Gleaner's Children's Own Spelling Bee All-Island Champion Rosanna Pike (second left) hoists her trophy along with Regina Bish (left) of St. Catherine, who finished second, Khandae Wright of Kingston (right), who was third, and Rev. Glen Archer, coach of all three girls. The 47th Spelling Bee National Final was held yesterday at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel, New Kingston. - NORMAN GRINDLEY/DEPUTY CHIEF PHOTOGRAPHER
HER EYES opened wide as the realisation hit her: She was champion.
Rosanna Pike, second-form student at Ardenne High School, took The Gleaner's Children's Own Spelling Bee All-Island title yesterday. She triumphed after Regina Bish of St. Catherine failed to spell 'e-p-i-c-e-n-e'. Regina had no handicaps while Rosanna had two, meaning Rosanna would get two chances to win. She only needed one word, 's-o-l-e-c-i-s-m', one meaning being "an ungrammatical combination of words in a sentence."
WONDERFUL FEELING
"It is an extreme, wonderful feeling to be champion. God has chosen to honour me with this and now I want to honour him," said Rosanna, who by then had been congratulated by seemingly a million fans.
Among the first was Regina. Both girls, as well as third place Khandae Wright of Kingston, were the latest products of the successful Glen Archer spelling bee programme.
Like little cadets in their royal blue shirts and black trousers and skirts, the spellers hunkered down to their task promptly at 9:00 a.m.
Some, many of them first-timers to the competition, made mistakes in the morning spelldown.
The more determined ones were not phased though, as not even a brief leak that appeared in the ballroom ceiling threw them.
The errors of the others, along with their scores from the written tests the day before, decided their fate. The girls dominated the final as none of the four boys was in the final seven. Champion Boy Oshane Williams of Clarendon finished tenth.
The top seven competitors were completed by Shari Rowe of Westmore-land, fourth; Lawre Johnson of Manchester, fifth; Janielle Richards of St. Ann, sixth; and,Jody-Ann Allen of St. Elizabeth, seventh.
After two nerve-wracking days of competition, the spellers, coaches and chaperones will pay courtesy calls on various public officials as part of a tour of Kingston and Serenity Park in Old Harbour.
