HONOLULU (KHON2) — Kira Lau, 13, is a spelling powerhouse.
The Iolani School student recently represented Hawai‘i at the 100th Scripps National Spelling Bee, a milestone year for the prestigious competition that draws top young spellers from across the country.
Kira confidently spelled her first word, Fatimid, and followed up with Marooned—a word she defined as “abandoned on a deserted island.”
She made it through two rounds before facing a written test in Round 3, where her impressive run came to an end.
“I was like, if I got out, I already made it this far. It doesn’t matter. I accomplished this,” Kira said.
Competing on the national stage was a major shift from Hawai‘i’s local spelling bee, with the setting being more intense.
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Held at the Gaylord National Resort Convention Center at the National Harbor, spellers were on stage in a large auditorium with judges directly in front of the spellers and an audience full of parents.
“I was trying not to look at everybody. I was just focusing on Dr. Bailey,” she recalled.
Jet lag added another challenge. “We didn’t get off Hawai‘i time. We were six hours behind. We’d wake up at 1 p.m. and miss stuff,” Kira said with a laugh. “Then we’d go down and do the activity for the day and go back to the room after.”
Still, Kira says the experience was unforgettable. “I think of how it started in my classroom with just 10 people. Got all the way to Washington, D.C.”
When asked her favorite word to spell, she answered: “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.”
Her advice for future spelling bee hopefuls? “Study more than I did,” she said with a smile.