The RHB-The Straits Times Spelling Championship, informally known as the Big Spell, is a spelling bee held annually in Singapore, organized by The Straits Times and RHB Bank. It was first held in 2012.
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2013 Championship
The 2013 competition was held from March 9, 2013 to April 27, 2013 at the Raffles City Convention Centre. Footage of the championship was broadcast by The Straits Times's RazorTV. Ashvin Sivakumar of Anglo-Chinese School (Primary), Singapore won the competition and received the $5,000 grand prize. An estimated 1,400 children participated.
Organisers and sponsors
As with the inaugural edition, the Big Spell 2013 was organised by The Straits Times and RHB Bank. The competition was supported by Singapore's Ministry of Education and the National Library Board.
Elimination rounds
The elimination rounds were broadcast by RazorTV. Round one of the Big Spell was held on March 9, 2013. An estimated 1,400 children from 120 schools in Singapore were registered for the first round of the Big Spell. The contestants took a vocabulary test, in which their answers were to be written on answer scripts. The duration of the test was an hour, and participants were given fifty words to complete. Out of the 1,400 children, some eighty of them were short listed for the zonal round, where the final thirty would be selected through the results.
Finals
The Grand Finals of the Big Spell commenced on April 27, 2013. There were thirty finalists in total. In all, ten rounds were played that day. Ashvin Sivakumar of Anglo-Chinese School (Primary), the eventual winner, was described as a "standout at the microphone", with his looming height and inquisitiveness. Footage of the Grand Finals were shown by RazorTV.
Winner and runner-up
Ashvin Sivakumar spelt pulchritudinous correctly in the final round of the day, and promptly finished first. As the victor, Sivakumar received $5,000 in cash and a school trophy. The runners-up, Kua Le Yi and Loi So Xian, were awarded $3,000 and $1,000 respectively.