The Tribune

ROY Seligman, a 12-year-old, eighth grade student of Lyford Cay International School, will make history as the first Bahamian to appear in the Scripps National Spelling Bee Finals tonight.

The event will be aired at 8pm.

Roy is a three-time BAISS Spelling Bee champion who has participated in competitive spelling since the 4th grade. He has already made history this year by being the first Bahamian to make it past the quarter-final round since the event’s inception in 1925.

He said he feels honoured to represent both his school and country on a global stage. “It’s a privilege and an honour,” Roy said. “The Scripps National Spelling Bee is very popular in The Bahamas. Advancing to the highest levels of the competition has been my dream since I started spelling competitively.

“I’m proud of how the competition has gone so far and happy that I have been able to put a smile on the faces of many people in our country. I will continue to do my best to make them proud.”

O’Niel Bain, marketing and communications director for Lyford Cay International School, hailed Roy’s accomplishments.

“The entire Lyford Cay International School community is so proud of Roy for his historic accomplishments. We are excited that many more Bahamians will be able to support him by tuning in to the finals of the Scripps National Spelling Bee thanks to REV.”

Two hundred and nine contestants from countries, including The Bahamas, Ghana, United States, Puerto Rico, Mexico, Japan Canada and Europe have competed thus far, but Roy has distinguished himself as the only international contestant to make it to the finals.

While this is Roy’s second year competing in the Scripps National Spelling Bee, it is his third time qualifying for the event. Due to COVID-19 restrictions in 2020 he was unable to travel to Washington, and was naturally a bit disappointed.

He decided to use the additional time to refine his spelling skills even further. Roy intensified his quest and ramped-up his training by participating in online competitions, networking with international spellers, feasting on the myriad of word banks developed on Quizlets, posting hundreds of sticky notes around his room, reading books to expand his vocabulary, setting his own personal study time and remaining motivated throughout.

Roy’s spelling coach Katina Seymour credits his tenacity and personal initiative with much of his success thus far.

“Roy wants to do well, so he set personal goals that we all supported,” she said. “It did my heart well to know that this young man continues to love learning... The result you see today is a young man who loves what he does. He enjoys learning about new words. We have rich conversations about where words come from, ways we can synthesize them, connect them and we even compete against each other - this is what makes the training sessions rewarding for both of us.”

The Scripps National Spelling Bee is being held at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World Resort today from 8pm to 10pm.

The event is scheduled to air on ESPNU REVTV Channel 732, part of one of REV’s premium packages.

In a press release, REV said it chose to air the spelling bee on REVTV Channel 205 to ensure that all REVTV subscribers throughout The Bahamas would be able to support Roy as he takes the stage.

Roy is the son of Mr and Mrs Arthur Seligman.