A 10-year-old primary school student has won the NSW spelling bee, beating nearly 200,000 peers from over 1,000 schools. The state's best spellers came together in Penrith to battle it out.

Penrith

A state-wide spelling bee in Penrith, New South Wales, saw participation from nearly 200,000 primary students representing more than 1,000 state schools. The event culminated in a final round between Finn McGee from Norell and Vale Public School and Sakaina Kazmi from Chester Hill, with Finn ultimately winning the championship.

The deciding word was 'subcutaneous,' which Finn spelled correctly to secure the title at just 10 years old. His preparation included studying word lists and the dictionary, supported by his family.

10-year-old primary school student crowned NSW spelling bee champion

On the outside, they may appear... T-R-A-N-Q-U-I-L. Tranquil. That is correct. But make no mistake, this hive of spelling bees was buzzing, having already outspelt almost 200,000 primary students from more than 1,000 state schools. Curtaile. C-U-R-T-A-L-E, curtaile. Oh, sorry, sorry, sorry, sorry. Oh, yes, yeah. I think that's wrong. I'm sorry, it's incorrect. I predicted it. The premier's spelling bee even had a ring-in from Tamworth. F-I-L-I-B-U-S-T-E-R. Show off. That's it, we're done. But this was a young person's to win. So the crowd is starting to go wild because we're getting to the P-O-I-N-T-Y end of the competition. Your word is paradigm. P-A-R-A-D-I-G-M, paradigm. Hours in, it came down to just two. Finn McGee from Norell and Vale Public School. Irresistible. Going letter for letter with Sakaina Kazmi from Chester Hill. I-R-R-E-S-I-S-T-I-B-L-E, irresistible. Correct. In the end, it came down to a spell-off. Am I saying the word right, subcutaneous? Yes, you are. S-U-B-C-U-T-A-N-E-U-S, subcutaneous. That is correct. A state champ at just 10 years old. He studied the word list and the dictionary. You take a lot of credit for that. We just started through a lot of random words and he learned all the patterns. Ali Donaldson, 10 News.

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