KNOXVILLE — Out of the 234 spellers who competed in this year’s News Sentinel Southern Appalachia Regional Spelling Bee, Rahul Krishnaswamy emerged victorious again.

The day started with competitors taking a written spelling exam, and those who missed one or no words on the exam advanced to the oral part of the competition.

Out of the 70 total qualifying spellers, by the end of the seventh round only two remained: Krishnaswamy, 14, of Ashley Academy in Johnson City and Ali Qureshi, 13, of L.F. Addington Middle School in Wise County, Va.

As Krishnaswamy approached the microphone, only one word stood between him and victory.