Sarv Dharavane, the 11-year-old, fifth grader from Austin Elementary School in DeKalb County, who just over two months ago became Georgia’s repeat champion speller, almost realized his dream of becoming the number one speller in the land at the Scripps National Spelling Bee Championship in Maryland. Sarv outlasted all other local champions but two, to finish as the number three speller in the nation.
Through 19 rounds Sarv confidently spelled words that included levallorphan, towhee, proclivity, kasha, quern, dhaura, burgall, saurel, lactagogue, fede ring, and saynete. On vocabulary he correctly answered - If something is hyaline, it: resembles glass.
But in the 19th round Sarv received the word "eserine," and missed it by adding an extra "s," spelling it "esserine."
Still Sarv was thrilled. "I thought I would get ninth place, but not third!," he said. "Next year I'm going to take it all!"
“We are so happy and proud for Sarv and his family,” said Lisa Morgan, kindergarten teacher and president of the Georgia Association of Educators, Sarv’s sponsor at the Scripps Bee. “We know the sacrifice that comes with preparing for such a feat and all of his hard work has paid off. All of Georgia congratulates Sarv on becoming the third best speller in the nation!"
Kudos also go out to Sara Daoud the 12-year-old, 7th grader from Greenbrier Middle School in Columbia County. Sara did very well for her first time as well, tying for 41st place. Sara words were jai alai, A hermitage is: a private retreat (vocabulary), degustation, Banter is: good-natured joking (vocabulary), and hesthogenous. Sara went out in round 7 with the word – “spirketting,” which she spelled “spurketing.”
Sarv enjoys many activities in his free time, including playing outside, spending time with his family and friends and, most importantly, reading. Sarv likes to stay active through soccer and swimming, and he has earned his green belt in Tae kwon do. Sarv is also proficient in puzzles and problem solving; he loves speed-solving Rubik’s Cubes, building with Lego bricks and coding with computer programming languages. Sarv also enjoys folding origami. His favorite subjects are English and math, and his favorite genre of books and movies is fantasy because it makes him feel like he has been transported to another world. Sarv has a goal to travel to every state in the United States and hopes to be a scientist or mathematician one day.
Sara loves to create, whether through visual or musical media. She loves to draw and paint, and she enjoys playing guitar and creating songs on the keyboard. Sara also likes to explore the world through reading and science.
For his effort, Sarv won $15,000 and a commemorative medal. Both Sarva and Sara received a prize package including Bee souvenirs and an official certificate of participation, A one-year subscription to Merriam-Webster Unabridged Online, a United States Mint Proof Set, a one-year subscription to Britannica Online Premium, a one-year subscription to News-O-Matic for the speller's school, A one-year subscription to News-O-Matic for the speller's school and a one-year subscription to News-O-Matic for the speller's school.
