Prelapsarian? Young Nova Scotian draws on memory to win national spelling bee

With prelapsarian as the final word he had to spell, 14-year-old Ryaan Khan of Bedford, N.S., recently claimed first place in the intermediate division of a national spelling competition.

Two young Halifax-area competitors made it to the Spelling Bee of Canada's 35thnational championship earlier this month.

Despite it being his first time competing, Khan won his category in the regional tournamentand then went on to win the national contest in Toronto.

Khan said the whole experience of travelling to Toronto, meeting new peopleand competing at the national level was surreal.

Ryaan Khan becomes the Spelling Bee of Canada intermediate champion

2 years ago

Duration 2:04

Ryaan Khan of Bedford, NS, won the intermediate title at Sunday's 35th annual Spelling Bee of Canada.

"I didn't really expect itto be honestbecause it was my second spelling bee," Khan toldCBC Radio's Information Morning on Thursday. "But I still feel proud and I feel honoured to win the competition."

Khan said his interest in competing grew out of his love of reading and writing. He prepared by memorizing a list of 400 words given to competitors.

"I didn't think I would win so I didn't take it that seriously," Khan said, "I didn't have unrealistic expectations for myself, however, I decided to get into it and decided to do as best I could."

As champion, Khan is granted an automatic berth in the nationals next year in the intermediate group.

He said he's tempted to take advantage of his last chance to compete before he is too old for the division, but he'll wait a bit before making his decision.

Listen to Information Morning host Portia Clark's full interview with Khan to hear his winning strategy.