Zaila Avant-garde wins Scripps National Spelling Bee
July 9, 2021 8:51 AM Subscribe
Zaila Avant-garde is the first African American winner of the Scripps Spelling Bee. She won it after correctly spelling the word "murraya" correctly. She is also the first champion from Louisiana.
In addition to being a spelling bee champion, she owns three Guinness world records for dribbling multiple balls simultaneously and has appeared in a commercial with Steph Curry. Spelling is actually her "side thing".
In addition to being a spelling bee champion, she owns three Guinness world records for dribbling multiple balls simultaneously and has appeared in a commercial with Steph Curry. Spelling is actually her "side thing".
Sorry to correct your capitalization (at least it's not your spelling!), but her last name is Avant-garde.
posted by JanetLand at 9:14 AM on July 9, 2021
posted by JanetLand at 9:14 AM on July 9, 2021
She was amazing! It's crazy that spelling isn't even her main interest. Just taking a break from being the coolest 14-year-old basketball player in the world to win at a completely unrelated thing, no problem.
I'm glad I watched the bee last night because I also got to take this photo of people applauding my great metafilter posts.
posted by theodolite at 9:15 AM on July 9, 2021 [34 favorites]
I'm glad I watched the bee last night because I also got to take this photo of people applauding my great metafilter posts.
posted by theodolite at 9:15 AM on July 9, 2021 [34 favorites]
“I was pretty relaxed on the subject of Murraya and pretty much any other word I got,” Zaila told the Associated Press.
Oh the shade. What a cool kid.
posted by ZaphodB at 9:18 AM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
Oh the shade. What a cool kid.
posted by ZaphodB at 9:18 AM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
I thought I would check out these basketball dribbling records to see what that was all about, and SHE IS AMAZING! Spelling actually is her side thing! And when you start to wonder how hard she must be concentrating to do some of these tricks, she just pops up on a unicycle for an amazing sort of humblebraggy self-one-upsmanship! Even just watching her basketball highlights on their own is impressive!
posted by This_Will_Be_Good at 9:20 AM on July 9, 2021 [7 favorites]
posted by This_Will_Be_Good at 9:20 AM on July 9, 2021 [7 favorites]
Mod note: Capitalization of Zaila Avante-garde's last name has been corrected!
posted by travelingthyme (staff) at 9:22 AM on July 9, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by travelingthyme (staff) at 9:22 AM on July 9, 2021 [5 favorites]
"Murraya" was kind of a gimme once you got the definition, if you know how these naming schemes work. But she is an amazing young lady, and I'm sure this isn't the last we'll be hearing from her.
posted by praemunire at 9:38 AM on July 9, 2021
posted by praemunire at 9:38 AM on July 9, 2021
She thanked Bill Murray for her win, since he'd stuck in her mind from seeing Lost in Translation. The idea for her to compete in the spelling bee came a couple of years ago to her dad, who figured her mental mathematical skills could probably translate well to spelling. He also had the idea for her novel surname, a tribute to John Coltrane. No word whether his own surname was changed at the same time as hers: he goes by Jawara Spacetime.
posted by progosk at 9:39 AM on July 9, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by progosk at 9:39 AM on July 9, 2021 [5 favorites]
(Is it OK to link to their FB/IG? They just seem like a pretty awesome bunch all around. Megaprops to Zaila&Co!)
posted by progosk at 9:50 AM on July 9, 2021
posted by progosk at 9:50 AM on July 9, 2021
Zaila's pinned Tweet is a 6th/7th grade basketball highlight reel.
posted by box at 9:56 AM on July 9, 2021 [2 favorites]
posted by box at 9:56 AM on July 9, 2021 [2 favorites]
I searched for murraya on google and it adds in a bit of its own celebration.
posted by signal at 9:57 AM on July 9, 2021 [16 favorites]
posted by signal at 9:57 AM on July 9, 2021 [16 favorites]
BTW, I instantly recognized the word when it crossed my social media feed because this is the same Genus that has my favorite herb ... Curry Leaves (murraya koenigii). This is a constant in my cooking and stuff does not taste right when you exclude it. Many in my family have their own tree in the garden to get the fresh stuff.
posted by indianbadger1 at 10:13 AM on July 9, 2021 [5 favorites]
posted by indianbadger1 at 10:13 AM on July 9, 2021 [5 favorites]
Cool kid, cool name, cool story. Needed this pick me up from some of the other news!
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:18 AM on July 9, 2021
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:18 AM on July 9, 2021
and has appeared in a commercial with Steph Curry
...
BTW, I instantly recognized the word when it crossed my social media feed because this is the same Genus that has my favorite herb ... Curry Leaves (murraya koenigii). This is a constant in my cooking and stuff does not taste right when you exclude it. Many in my family have their own tree in the garden to get the fresh stuff.
Also like Agent Mulder, I'm starting to see a conspiracy at play here. She appears in a TV commercial with Steph Curry and then wins a spelling bee with a word that relates to curry?
/squints and points Is that an old man smoking a cigarette over there?
posted by NoMich at 10:19 AM on July 9, 2021 [11 favorites]
...
BTW, I instantly recognized the word when it crossed my social media feed because this is the same Genus that has my favorite herb ... Curry Leaves (murraya koenigii). This is a constant in my cooking and stuff does not taste right when you exclude it. Many in my family have their own tree in the garden to get the fresh stuff.
Also like Agent Mulder, I'm starting to see a conspiracy at play here. She appears in a TV commercial with Steph Curry and then wins a spelling bee with a word that relates to curry?
/squints and points Is that an old man smoking a cigarette over there?
posted by NoMich at 10:19 AM on July 9, 2021 [11 favorites]
And curry rhymes with Bill Murray, and Murray rhymes with Hooray, which is probably what she said after she won... it's all coming together...
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:21 AM on July 9, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by Saxon Kane at 10:21 AM on July 9, 2021 [4 favorites]
I searched for murraya on google and it adds in a bit of its own celebration.
That is so sweet!
posted by praemunire at 10:23 AM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
That is so sweet!
posted by praemunire at 10:23 AM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
Murray rhymes with Hooray
Interesting! "Hurry" and "hooray" aren't homophones in my part of the globe.
posted by explosion at 10:52 AM on July 9, 2021 [2 favorites]
Interesting! "Hurry" and "hooray" aren't homophones in my part of the globe.
posted by explosion at 10:52 AM on July 9, 2021 [2 favorites]
She also learned how to speed read and figured out that she could divide five-digit numbers by two-digit numbers in her head, a skill she said she had a hard time explaining.
“It’s like asking a millipede how they walk with all those legs,” said Zaila, who has three younger brothers. - NYT
That millipede analogy is amazing, she is a seriously talented young woman!
posted by papercrane at 10:58 AM on July 9, 2021 [5 favorites]
“It’s like asking a millipede how they walk with all those legs,” said Zaila, who has three younger brothers. - NYT
That millipede analogy is amazing, she is a seriously talented young woman!
posted by papercrane at 10:58 AM on July 9, 2021 [5 favorites]
That she’s a spelling bee champion, a basketball prodigy, a math wiz, that her father’s name is Jawara Spacetime, that her name is Zaila Avant-garde.
If that was the backstory of a Marvel superhero, I’d roll my eyes, but that this is an actual real person is just beyond amaz…
Oh goodness, she is an actual superhero, isn’t she? Let’s hope we all survive the alien invasion she’s destined to save the planet Earth from.
posted by Kattullus at 11:22 AM on July 9, 2021 [19 favorites]
If that was the backstory of a Marvel superhero, I’d roll my eyes, but that this is an actual real person is just beyond amaz…
Oh goodness, she is an actual superhero, isn’t she? Let’s hope we all survive the alien invasion she’s destined to save the planet Earth from.
posted by Kattullus at 11:22 AM on July 9, 2021 [19 favorites]
Hooray (hooraya?) for her!! Those juggling/ball tricks are truly amazing. It looks like she absolutely made gravity just do her bidding in those videos.
I too needed this happy kid news today.
posted by obfuscation at 11:55 AM on July 9, 2021
I too needed this happy kid news today.
posted by obfuscation at 11:55 AM on July 9, 2021
Googling “murraya” (a variety of which happens to be commonly known as “orange jessamine” (typo?)) right now produces some effects.
posted by Going To Maine at 11:58 AM on July 9, 2021 [3 favorites]
posted by Going To Maine at 11:58 AM on July 9, 2021 [3 favorites]
Interesting! "Hurry" and "hooray" aren't homophones in my part of the globe.
Well, I'm stretching a bit... curry/murrEE, murRAY/hooRAY
posted by Saxon Kane at 12:28 PM on July 9, 2021
Well, I'm stretching a bit... curry/murrEE, murRAY/hooRAY
posted by Saxon Kane at 12:28 PM on July 9, 2021
I have never seen anything like what she can do with those basketballs.
I mean, Stephen Curry and Ja Morant have probably already signed up to attend her basketball camp this fall as students.
posted by jamjam at 12:41 PM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
I mean, Stephen Curry and Ja Morant have probably already signed up to attend her basketball camp this fall as students.
posted by jamjam at 12:41 PM on July 9, 2021 [1 favorite]
Congratulations and well done, Zaila, on a significant achievement!
posted by theora55 at 12:55 PM on July 9, 2021
posted by theora55 at 12:55 PM on July 9, 2021
She is a pretty sweet juggler, and featured in an IJA (International Jugglers' Association) Tricks of the Month.
Bounce juggling five basketballs while balancing on a basketball is A-list stuff.
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 2:49 PM on July 9, 2021 [2 favorites]
Bounce juggling five basketballs while balancing on a basketball is A-list stuff.
posted by It's Never Lurgi at 2:49 PM on July 9, 2021 [2 favorites]
I mean, Stephen Curry and Ja Morant have probably already signed up to attend her basketball camp this fall as students.
tbh, the opportunities for multi-ball dribbling under standard nba rules are what we might call 'limited.'
posted by kaibutsu at 5:57 PM on July 9, 2021 [4 favorites]
tbh, the opportunities for multi-ball dribbling under standard nba rules are what we might call 'limited.'
posted by kaibutsu at 5:57 PM on July 9, 2021 [4 favorites]
Senior writer at The Root, Michael Harriot, has a great Twitter thread (threadreader) about why and how African Americans were shut out of the national spelling bee for so long, and about a 13-year-old Black girl, Marie Bolden, who won the first National Spelling Bee (not Scripps) in 1908.
posted by joannemerriam at 6:14 AM on July 12, 2021 [4 favorites]
posted by joannemerriam at 6:14 AM on July 12, 2021 [4 favorites]
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