Meet 13-Year-Old Indo-American Faizan Zaki, Boy Who Won 2025 National Spelling Bee Taking Home $50,000 Prize

Faizan Zaki, a 13-year-old Indo-American who won the championship title at the 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee. Scroll down to read about his story.

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Faizan Zaki, a 13-year-old Indo-American boy from Texas, won the championship title at the 2025 Scripps National Spelling Bee. He spelled the French word “eclaircissement” and got the cash prize of $50,000. He started his spelling journey from the age of seven. 

What Is Scripps National Spelling Bee?

This year, the Scripps National Spelling Bee celebrated their 100th anniversary of the competition, it started in 1925, though it’s 97th edition this year as it was cancelled in between due to World War II and Covid pandemic in 2020. This spell bee identifies America's best spellers. This year, 243 spellers participated in the competition representing every U.S. state and territory. The age of the youngest speller was 8 years while the 30 per cent participants were of 14 years. 

What Are the Prizes?

The Winner of the Bess receives the $50,000 prize money and a very prestigious Trophy of Scribbs along with $2,500 and a reference library courtesy of Merriam-Webster, Encyclopedia Britannica reference works of worth $400 and $1,000 in Scholastic Dollars to donate of a school. And all finalists also receive the prize of $2,000.

His Win

He participated in the same competition last year also and he was defeated in a tiebreaker round by his friend, Bruhat Soma when he prematurely attempted to spell "commelina" without seeking clarification, leading to a misstep. This error temporarily reinstated two previously eliminated contestants. But this year, he became a better version of himself and this year he defeated everyone and dropped to the floor in disbelief and shock of his win. 

The other finalists were Sarvadnya Kadam and Sarv Dharavane who is just 11 years old and the youngest finalist. All the three of them are Indo-Americans. 

Zaki's triumph continues the longstanding tradition of Indian-American excellence in the Scripps National Spelling Bee. His journey serves as an inspiring testament to perseverance, passion, and the enduring impact of dedication.