The D-E-F-I-N-I-T-I-O-N of a good spelling bee may have forever changed in Missouri . It took seventh grader Kush Sharma more than 90 rounds and two days -- separated by about two weeks -- to finally get the winning word . He beat fifth grader Sophia Hoffman , who went out on the word `` stifling , '' earning a spot in the Scripps National Spelling Bee . The two met February 22 at the Kansas City Public Library for the regularly scheduled competition , where they exhausted all the words on a list provided to the judges . After more than 60 rounds , the match was halted without a winner . `` We did n't want to just go through the dictionary and give them more words , '' Mary Olive Thompson , outreach coordinator for Kansas City Public Library , said at the time . `` We feared that someone would get a word that was too easy while the other would get an extremely difficult word . We wanted to be a bit more calculated and neutral , and we wanted to give each an equal opportunity . '' But soon , Kush and Sophia were more than two young , ace spellers from Kansas City . They were national celebrities , appearing on CNN and ABC 's `` Good Morning America . '' That made Saturday 's rematch all that much bigger . The library could n't contain those who came to watch and ended up setting up a live video stream so that about 100 spectators could watch from the lobby , Thompson said . And this might not be the last time Kush and Sophia duel in the spelling arena . As Thompson noted , `` both students are young enough -- they could face each other again '' next year . Until then , the event 's organizers are celebrating what was a riveting , historic and -- in the end -- emotional edition of this year 's bee . `` We got to know the kids ; they are both great kids , '' Thompson said . `` This is not the last we are going to see of Sophia . ''
Seventh grader Seth Sharma wins the City spelling bee with the word ` ` definition '' Two weeks ago , he and fifth grader Sophia Hoffman had exhausted all the words on the list . Sophia went out on the street ` ` ' '' ` ` This is not the last we are going to see of Sophia , '' spelling bee queen says .