10-year-old wins National Geographic Bee, Kent boy 3rd

By Randolph E. Schmid

Associated Press

WASHINGTON – Calvin McCarter, the youngest competitor in a field of 55 youthful geography experts, won the National Geographic Bee Wednesday.

McCarter, a 10-year-old Michigan homeschooler, prevailed by knowing that the Lop Nur nuclear testing site is in China.

His victory came in a contest marked by a questionable call and an instant replay that upheld the initial ruling from host Alex Trebek that Erik Miller of Washington was late in identifying Indonesia as the home of popular shadow puppet shows.

A smiling McCarter said afterward he was “a little bit nervous but happy” with his victory. McCarter, of Jenison, Mich., collected a $25,000 college scholarship.

The second-place $15,000 scholarship went to Matthew Russell, 14, an eighth-grader at Fretz Middle School in Bradford, Pa.

Third place and a $10,000 scholarship went to Miller, 14, a homeschooler from Kent, Wash.

From Colorado to Connecticut, from North Dakota to Naples, Italy, students in grades four through eight began their battles of wits on Oct. 15, narrowing the field from 5 million participants down to the 55 competitors headed for the national finals.

The final 10 in the competition sponsored by the National Geographic Society faced off Wednesday morning in the competition emceed by “Jeopardy” host Trebek.

In addition to the winners, the other seven finalists were:

_Isaiah Hess, a 14-year-old homeschooler from Colorado Springs, Colo.

_Aaron Kiersh, 12, a sixth-grader at Bedford Middle School, Westport, Conn.

_Ryan Felix, 14, who attends eighth grade at the American High School in Naples, Italy. He represents Defense Department schools.

_Benjamin Detrixhe, 11, a fifth-grader at Clyde Elementary School, Clyde, Kan.

_Nathaniel Mattison, 13, an eighth-grader at H.C. Crittenden Middle School in Armonk, N.Y.

_Alex Smith, 13, who attends eighth grade at Turrentine Middle School in Burlington, N.C.

_John Rice, a 14-year-old homeschooler from Maddock, N.D.

Last year Kyle Haddad-Fonda, 14, of Shoreline, Wash., triumphed by knowing that a region of melting and evaporation in the lower portion of a glacier is called the zone of ablation.

Haddad-Fonda, a student at The Evergreen School, a private school, won a $25,000 college scholarship. It was his third try; he also represented Washington in 1999 and 2000.

It’s not unusual for state winners to repeat; indeed, 11 of the 55 competitors this year have made the trip before. North Dakota’s Rice was his state’s representative each of the last two years.

Though she didn’t make the final 10 this year, the national competition is a family tradition for Mallika Thampy of St. Louis. She also represented Missouri in 1999. Her brother Eapen represented Missouri in the finals in 1997 and 1998. Another brother, George, was second in the National Geographic Bee in 2000 and won the National Spelling Bee a week later.

Debbie Biehl of Saluda, S.C., also followed two brothers to the national finals. David represented South Carolina in 1998 and 1999, winning on his second try. His brother Thomas was the state representative in 2001.

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