内容摘要：Around 1 a.m. on July 5, 2024, two deputies dressed in Marshals Service shirts were on duty in an unmarked government car in Washington when Flowers exited a minivan, approached the vehicle and pointed a loaded gun at one of the deputies through a window. The deputy fired four shots at Flowers, hitting him in the mouth.

Around 1 a.m. on July 5, 2024, two deputies dressed in Marshals Service shirts were on duty in an unmarked government car in Washington when Flowers exited a minivan, approached the vehicle and pointed a loaded gun at one of the deputies through a window. The deputy fired four shots at Flowers, hitting him in the mouth.

“I did not win the National Spelling Bee in spite of my autism. I did not win the National Spelling Bee by triumphing over my autism. I won the National Spelling Bee because of my autism,” the 53-year-old Pennington says. “For me, it almost felt like if you hear a chord played on a piano but there’s a dissonant note in that chord, that’s what it felt like when you came across a misspelling.”Pennington, who lives in Minneapolis with his wife and dog, worked for years in corporate human resources and is now working as a writer, collaborating on an as-yet unpublished biography of songwriter Eden Ahbez. He still loves academic competitions and word games, and he has had crossword puzzles published by the Atlantic, The Wall Street Journal and the Los Angeles Times.

Even among spelling champions, Nupur Lala’s name inspires reverence and awe. Her victory in 1999 was later chronicled in a documentary, “Spellbound,” and she kicked off. That doesn’t mean it was easy to be known for her linguistic brilliance.“One thing that really stood out about John (Masko), my very soon-to-be husband: Every man I had dated before never wanted to play any sort of word game with me. They would avoid doing the crossword puzzle, refused to play Scrabble,” the 40-year-old Lala says. “I realized this man was special among so many reasons because he was the first man who was willing to play Scrabble with me consistently, and now I would say we’re pretty even in Scrabble ability.”

At this point, Masko chimes in via speakerphone: “She’s still much better at crossword puzzles!”Lala works as a neuro-oncologist at Dartmouth Health in Lebanon, New Hampshire. She prescribes chemotherapy and coordinates management of brain and spine tumors. And she has a theory about why spelling champions pursue medicine or neuroscience — because they’re already intrigued by how the brain works.

“One thing I was really fascinated by after participating in spelling bees is eidetic memory. Things you’ve seen in the past flash as pictures in your head, and that occurred for me during the spelling bee,” Lala says. “When I went to medical school, I didn’t expect this at all, I picked neurology because I was so interested in preserving faculties like language that really make people who they are.”

Kerry Close Guaragno won the 2006 bee in her fifth appearance at nationals and learned plenty about perseverance along the way.The Associated Press’ education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP’s

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AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — First came the mounting tension in the shoulders and the weakening grip while carrying 25-pound weights (11.3 kilograms).Then the labored breathing while ripping through the rowing and skiing simulators, and the pain in the thighs on the box jumps.