New Delhi:
Fourteen-year-old Indian-American student Shrey Parikh, who won the 2026 Scripps National Spelling Bee, has credited years of hard work, disciplined preparation and a deeper focus on learning words for his victory in the prestigious competition.
The California-based teenager emerged as champion after three days of competition at Washington’s Constitution Hall, becoming the latest Indian-American contestant to win the renowned spelling contest.
This was Shrey’s third appearance at the National Spelling Bee.
In the final round, Shrey faced 12-year-old Ishaan Gupta in a fast-paced spell-off, where contestants were required to spell as many words as possible within 90 seconds. Shrey correctly spelled 32 words, with “cashaw”, a type of pumpkin, serving as his championship-winning word.
Speaking to NDTV, Shrey described the moment of victory as a mix of emotions.
“When I won the competition, I felt a mix of excitement and relief. I was just so glad because it was an accumulation of all the hard work that I had put in,” he said.
Shrey’s journey at the National Spelling Bee has been one of steady progress. He finished 89th in 2022 before securing third place in 2024. He said greater commitment and preparation made the difference, helping him make the leap from a top-three finish to becoming champion.
“I made the leap by really focusing and working harder on spelling and by investing much more time. I tried to learn the words and patterns more thoroughly than I did before. It was mostly about putting in more work, more hours and trying harder,” he said.
Discussing his preparation strategy, Shrey said he relied heavily on typing-based study programmes that allowed him to review large volumes of words efficiently. The method also proved useful during the spell-off round.
“When it came to the spell-off, it was very helpful because I had already practised typing words quickly. It felt like another practice session,” he said.
He said he speaks English, Gujarati and a little of another language, and balances his interests by managing his time carefully.
“I try to make time for both. Spelling has taken much more time, but I try to keep a balance that works for me,” he said.
Recalling the tense final moments of the competition, Shrey said he deliberately avoided thinking about the result and focused solely on spelling each word correctly.
“During those seconds, I wasn’t thinking so much about the result. I was just focused on my words and trying to get every word right as fast as possible,” he said.
To stay calm before competitions, Shrey said he reminds himself of the countless hours of preparation he has already put in.
“One of the techniques I use is telling myself that I’ve practised this many times. If I can replicate what I did in practice, I should be fine,” he said.
His parents, Khyati Mehta and Gaurav Parikh, said the victory was the culmination of years of dedication.
“It was pure joy and excitement. He achieved a goal that he had been working towards for the past three to four years,” his mother said.
His father said the family’s guiding principle had always been to focus on preparation rather than outcomes.
“I’ve always taught him to focus on the process and the outcome will take care of itself. Try to be the best-prepared candidate and the results will follow,” he said.
Shrey’s mother recalled that his love for words began at an early age. Unlike most children, she said, he would regularly stop reading to look up unfamiliar words in a dictionary and learn their meanings.
“If he didn’t know a word, he would get up, look it up in the dictionary and understand it. That habit over the years has helped him immensely,” she said.
The champion also acknowledged using artificial intelligence in a limited way during his preparation. He said he occasionally used AI tools to clean up word lists by removing notes attached to entries, making them easier to study.
“Other than that, most of the work was done manually,” he said.
When asked about his role models, Shrey said his family remains his biggest source of inspiration because of their work ethic and support. He also named Soham Sukhatankar as someone who influenced his study methods and taught him how to prepare more effectively.
Offering advice to aspiring spellers, Shrey emphasised the importance of effort over results.
“Trying is the most important thing because that’s all you can control. Just try your best and see where it takes you,” he said.
