Paul Hamrick, Speller 72 and a California eighth grader, is out. He tied for 35th place last year.
His word was "fourrier," meaning one that goes before : forerunner, precursor.
Paul was excited, of course. His 12-year-old brother, Alex, is, too.
“I think it's very good he made it this far,” Alex said.
When he's not spelling, Paul loves math. He's also writing a book about a superhero, Schwa Boy, who has the ability to alter how people sound. In the first chapter, Schwa Boy makes a school principal sound like Darth Vader.
This is just the fifth spelling bee Paul has participated in. And he's been prepping all year. He loves meeting the other spellers and past champions.
Paul's family travels a lot, and he hopes to go to Japan and return to Europe. When he's older, Paul hopes to write books.
