North Carolina came close on Thursday night to having the best speller in the nation for the first time since 1970.
Kushi Gottimukkala, 13, of Morrisville, finished in fourth place in the 2026 Scripps National Spelling Bee. Gottimukkala made it into the sixth round of Thursday night’s finals in Washington D.C. before missing the word “cara sposa,” which means dear wife.
“Oh Kushi, what an amazing performance tonight,” Mary Brooks, the head judge said after Gottimukkala was eliminated. “You are an incredible speller, and we will hope to see you back. Great job.”…