When Avijeet Randhawa correctly spelled the word “forbs” in the 25th round of the 45th Riverside County Spelling Bee on Thursday, March 23, at the Moreno Valley Conference and Recreation Center, he ensured that the title of Riverside County Spelling Bee Champion would remain in the Randhawa family for the 7th year in a row.
Following in the footsteps of his older sisters, Lara (2021 and 2022 champion), and Aisha (2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019 champion), Avijeet will now represent Riverside County at the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Maryland from May 28 to June 2, 2023.
A total of 27 Riverside County students competed in the event by spelling words ranging from “scrivener” and “gypsophila”, to “kookaburra” and “limpa” over nearly three hours of competition.
Victoria Michael-Taiwo, a 4th grade student from Tuscany Hills Elementary School in Lake Elsinore Unified School District, was the runner-up. Profess Adhikari, a 6th grade student from River Springs Charter School, finished 3rd, and Ryan Scott, a 7th grade student from Eric Stanley Gardner Middle School in the Temecula Valley Unified School District finished 4th.
In the 24th round, Victoria Michael-Taiwo misspelled “consilient”, and Avijeet Randhawa correctly spelled “kickshaw”. In the final round, Randhawa correctly spelled “forbs”, a plural noun that describes herbs other than grass.
“My sisters said ‘Don’t feel anxious. Keep on breathing, focus, and no matter what, keep on going,” Avijeet said. “The moment when I was most nervous, I could feel my heart beating, but I took deep breaths like my dad told me and I was able to get the spelling.”
“One of the hardest words was ‘forbs’, because, in Greek, that first sound is usually ‘ph’. But, then I remembered about five months ago, my sister quizzed me on it, and we went over it because it was an exception,” Avijeet said.
Avijeet described his typical day of studying 500-800 words every day. Ahead of the Scripps National Bee, his strategy will be to up his words per day to 800-1000 or higher.
“I’m feeling excited and happy, and can’t wait to go to the competition in Washington, D.C.,” Avijeet said immediately following the competition and awards ceremony.
Avijeet also shared championship-level advice for other students interested in competitive spelling.
“It takes a lot of work, but if you keep going at it, you’ll be able to do it,” Avijeet said. “I am really thankful for my parents’ and siblings’ help, and I couldn’t have done it without them.”
The 2023 Riverside County Spelling Bee marked the return to an in-person competition after the COVID-19 pandemic forced the event’s cancellation in 2020, and the 2021 and 2022 events were held virtually.