For the second year in a row, Lakewood eighth-grader Sylvie Lamontagne was in the top ten of the Scripps National Spelling Bee.
She beat out more than 300 competitors.
People all over the country were hanging on every letter including Sylvie’s friends who gathered for a watch party at The Garlic Knot.
Sylvie survived words like "ekka," "kakiemon," and "shubunkin."
She made it to the final four, but Sylvie was eliminated when she incorrectly spelled "chaoborine," a type of gnat.
“When I first saw the word I knew that I hadn’t seen it before, and so I just said, 'OK, I’m going to try to figure this out,'” said Sylvie on ESPN where the Spelling Bee was nationally televised.
When she’s not dancing, family friends say Sylvie studies almost five hours every day.
“She’s worked incredibly hard. Dedication that’s mind-boggling for someone her age,” said family friend Stephanie Martin.
Sylvie’s fellow Girl Scouts are inspired by their friend’s ability telling Denver7 she’s extremely intelligent, really nice and too eager to volunteer to help others.
Sylvie can’t compete again next year because she is no longer eligible, but says she now wants to be a spelling coach.
This year’s Scripps National Spelling Bee ended in a tie for the third straight year with Jairam Hathwar and Nihar Janga being declared co-champions.
Scripps is the parent company of Denver7, KMGH-TV &TheDenverChannel.com in Denver.
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