FOX19.com and FOX19 News, weather, traffic, and sports for Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky | COINCIDENCE? Spellers united by dreams
Member Center:
Associated Press - May 26, 2009 7:44 PM ET
WASHINGTON (AP) - Reigning national spelling champion Sameer Mishra is a 14-year-old Indiana kid who wants to be a neurosurgeon when he grows up.
Last year's runner-up and a top contender for Thursday's contest is an all-business 13-year-old Indian-American boy from Michigan whose sights also are set on neurosurgery.
Another favorite expected to be onstage for the finals is a 13-year-old Kansas girl whose family comes from India. Not surprisingly, she also wants to be a neurosurgeon.
The three have come to know each other through the bee, keeping tabs on each other through e-mails and instant messages throughout the year.
All three trace their roots to Balu Natarajan of Chicago, who in 1985 became the first Indian-American national bee champion. 6 of the past 10 winners are Indian Americans.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
