The 2010 MetLife South Asian Spelling Bee (www.southasianspellingbee.com) concluded its 9-city tour this past weekend with its last event in the Boston Area.

“I am happy to see such new talent year over year and from center to center and this makes the platform and all the effort put into it worthwhile,” said Rahul Walia, Founder - South Asian Spelling Bee. “I am also excited to see the exposure being given to the spellers and the platform on a national scale by one of the most credible publications,” he added in reference to the article in Wall Street Journal.

In Boston, Stuti Mishra from West Melbourne, FL was the regional champ and Rahul Malayappan from Danbury, CT was the first runner up while Surabhi Iyer from Franklin, MA came in at third place.

2009 MetLife South Asian Spelling Bee Champion Akshat Shekhar from West Roxbury, MA hosted the Boston event and signed autographs for the registered spellers. He also gave a talk and interacted with parents and spellers to give them tips on how to prepare as well as share his experience of being a top speller. It was very well received with the audience who asked questions about his experiences.

John Derbick, Assistant Vice President, Global Brand & Marketing Services, MetLife, said “MetLife’s long history of serving the South Asian community has helped us to understand what matters most to families.  We know the significance of education, as well as the need for a plan to cover the rising costs of tuition.  We’re proud to once again sponsor the South Asian Spelling Bee, and to help families achieve their dream of attaining the best education for their children.”

The winners received cash prizes of $500, $300 and $200 respectively.

Children upto 14 years of age are eligible to participate and the contest saw spellers of even 6 years of age compete and make it past a few rounds. There are 6 more cities on the anvil and for more information and to register your child, please visit www.southasianspellingbee.com.

The top two winners plus one parent each from every city will be given an all expenses paid trip to NJ on August 14 for the FINALS.

Yatra.com is the associate sponsor for the event and the contest will be telecast globally on Sony Entertainment Television-ASIA.

Attendance to watch the finals is free and to reserve your FREE passes interested parties may visit the website www.southasianspellingbee.com  for more details.

To reserve your FREE passes to the Finals, please log on to www.southasianspellingbee.com and fill in your details.

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