Two years ago, the Scripps National Spelling Bee had arguably the most dramatic -- and delightful -- ending in its nearly hundred-year history. After five rounds and forty-seven words spelled correctly, the judges threw in the towel and declared eight co-champions, much to the joy of the contestants and the millions who tuned in on television. So, now that the kids have bested the competition, the organizers have been forced to find a new way to challenge them. The Athletic’s Seth Davis recently took a break from the college hoops beat to write about Scripps' new rules this year (and people's opinions about them), a 14-year-old girl who is one of the favorites to win, and why the spelling bee is not what many people assume.

Read Seth Davis's full story about the 2021 Scripps Spelling Bee:

https://theathletic.com/2686719/2021/07/07/the-scripps-national-spelling-bee-is-approaching-its-reckoning-will-the-dictionary-strike-back/

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.