The 63rd Scripps National Spelling Bee was held in Washington, D.C. at the Capital Hilton on May 30–31, 1990, sponsored by the E.W. Scripps Company.
| 63rd Scripps National Spelling Bee | |
|---|---|
 The Capital Hilton, site of the 63rd National Spelling Bee | |
| Date | May 30–31, 1990 |
| Location | The Capital Hilton in Washington, D.C.[1] |
| Winner | Amy Marie Dimak |
| Age | 13 |
| Residence | Seattle, Washington |
| Sponsor | The Seattle Times |
| Sponsor location | Seattle, Washington |
| Winning word | fibranne |
| No. of contestants | 226[2] |
| Pronouncer | Alex Cameron |
| Preceded by | 62nd Scripps National Spelling Bee |
| Followed by | 64th Scripps National Spelling Bee |
The winner was 13-year-old Amy Marie Dimak of Seattle, Washington, correctly spelling "fibranne". Dimak reported that she knew all 11 words she faced, and did not make any guesses. Second place went to 13-year-old Eric Enders of El Paso, Texas, who missed "douanier", spelling it as "doinier".[2][3][4]
There were 226 spellers this year, 127 girls and 99 boys.[5][6] The youngest competitor was 9 year old Erika Harrell from Muncie, Indiana.[7] Eight spellers dropped out in round one, 33 dropped in round two, and 30 were eliminated in round three. 155 spellers survived into day two.[8]
Spellers' others activities included a visit to Gunston Hall on Monday of Bee Week, and visits to Washington monuments and Arlington National Cemetery on Tuesday.[1] Competition began at 8:30am on Wednesday.[1]
The first place prize was $5,000 (and other non-cash prizes), a sizable increase over $1,500 from the prior year. Second place received $4,000; third received $2,500 and fourth got $1,000. Total cash prizes to all spellers were $26,550.[2][4]
References
edit- ^ a b c West, Keith D. (27 May 1990). Utahn joins 200 top spellers at national bee, Deseret News
- ^ a b c Eisler, Peter (1 June 1990). Tomiko trips on 'obeliscal' object, Gainesville Sun
- ^ Healy, Rita (May 19, 2007). "1990: Amy Marie Dimak". Time. Archived from the original on June 1, 2007. Retrieved March 7, 2008.
- ^ a b Bass, Janet (1 June 1990). Fibranne' winning word for Seattle girl, UPI
- ^ (1 June 1990). Seattle Girl Wins the B-E-E, Sarasota Herald-Tribune
- ^ Henry, Tamara (1 June 1990). How do you spell 'fibranne' ...?, Free Lance Star (Associated Press)
- ^ (31 May 1990). 71 students eliminated in 63rd bee; 155 survive, Times Daily (Associated Press)
- ^ Bass, Janet (30 May 1990). Sixty-third annual spelling bee begins, UPI