Sacramento's Nithika Rangan eliminated from Scripps National Spelling Bee

(FOX40.COM) – A Sacramento eighth grader's time at the Scripps National Spelling Bee has come to an end.

Nithika Rangan, 14, was eliminated from the competition after advancing to the semi-finals.
•Video above: Interview with Nithika Rangan (from March 2024)

The Brookfield School student was eliminated from the event on Wednesday after misspelling “tennantite” in the sixth round. She was one of 45 spellers in the semi-finals.

She began Wednesday by correctly answering the question “was it to engage in an argument” in the fifth round.

Rangan advanced to the fifth round after correctly spelling “cognitus” in the fourth round. She was one of 59 spellers who advanced to the quarterfinals.

This was Rangan's second time competing in the National Spelling Bee, with his previous experience dating back to 2019 as a third grader.

Rangan is also a singer, performing the national anthem at more than 50 sporting events and during the Sacramento Run to Feed the Hungry, according to her biography on the Spelling Bee's website.

In a March interview with FOX40.com, Rangan said his journey began in first grade after his teacher told his mother about his spelling skills.

“I won the spelling bee in class and my teacher said to my mom, 'Hey, your daughter is really good at spelling,' and that's when my spelling bee journey spelling started,” Rangan said. “My mom started signing me up for a lot more spelling bees and I decided I really liked it and decided to pursue it.”

The National Spelling Bee began Tuesday and will conclude with the finals Thursday evening. Since 2011, the spelling bee has been held at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland.