The 28th annual
National Geographic Bee
The National Geographic GeoBee (called the National Geography Bee from 1989 to 2000 and the National Geographic Bee from 2001 to 2018, also referred to as the Nat Geo Bee) was an annual geography contest sponsored by the National Geographic Soci ...
was held between May 22–25, 2016 in
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
,
DC. For the first time, the bee was moderated by the American humorist, journalist and actor
Mo Rocca
Maurice Alberto Rocca (born January 28, 1969) is an American humorist, journalist, and actor. He is a correspondent for ''CBS Sunday Morning'', the host and creator of ''My Grandmother's Ravioli'' on the Cooking Channel, and also the host of ''The ...
and featured a grand prize of a $50,000 college scholarship. The champion was Rishi Nair of Williams Magnet Middle School in
Tampa, Florida
Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...
, who won the $50,000 scholarship, lifetime membership to the National Geographic Society, and a Lindblad expedition to southeast
Alaska
Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...
.
The 2nd-place winner was Saketh Jonnalagadda of Stony Brook Middle School in
Westford, Massachusetts
Westford is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was at 24,643 at the time of the 2020 Census.
History
Westford began as 'West Chelmsford', a village in the town of Chelmsford. The village of West Chelmsfor ...
, who won a $25,000 scholarship. The 3rd-place winner was Kapil Nathan of Brock's Gap Intermediate School in
Hoover, Alabama
Hoover is a city in Jefferson and Shelby counties in north central Alabama, United States. Hoover is the largest suburban city in Alabama and the 6th largest city in Alabama. The city had a population of 92,606 as of the 2020 US Census. Hoover ...
, who won a $10,000 scholarship. Rishi was also the First sixth-grade National Champion since 2008.
2016 State Champions
Preliminary rounds
Ten preliminary rounds held on May 23, 2016. Each State Champion had to answer ten oral questions, and prior to their arrival in Washington, D.C., had to submit a video related to a topic. The video was worth up to six points, hence the highest possible number of points was 16. One 16 and 4 15s were scored. A 9-way tie for 14 pts was broken with 4 exiting the competition. The ten finalists were announced around 11:30. The top ten finalists were as follows:
*Kapil Nathan- from
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...
; 14/16 (9/10 + 5/6)
* Rishi Nair- from Florida; 15/16 (10/10 + 5/6)
*Rishi Kumar- from
Maryland
Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...
; 14/16 (8/10 + 6/6)
*Saketh Jonnalagadda- from
; 14/16 (9/10 + 5/6)
* Lucas Eggers- from
Minnesota
Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...
; 16/16 (10/10 + 6/6) (only one with a perfect score in the preliminary rounds)
* Grace Rembert- from
Montana
Montana () is a state in the Mountain West division of the Western United States. It is bordered by Idaho to the west, North Dakota and South Dakota to the east, Wyoming to the south, and the Canadian provinces of Alberta, British Columbi ...
; 15/16 (10/10 + 5/6)
*Samanyu Dixit- from
North Carolina
North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...
; 15/16 (10/10 + 5/6)
*Ashwin Sivakumar- from
Oregon
Oregon () is a U.S. state, state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northern boundary with Washington (state), Washington, while the Snake River delineates much of it ...
; 15/16 (9/10 + 6/6)
*Pranay Varada- from
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
; 14/16 (9/10 + 5/6)
*Thomas Wright- from
Wisconsin
Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...
; 14/16 (9/10 + 5/6)
Final rounds
The finals consisted of questions regarding the U.S. through Rounds 1–5, with 4 eliminated once Round 5 was over. A tie existed between Rishi Kumar and Lucas Eggers, with the latter exiting the competition. After that, questions regarding the world appeared. A three-way tie existed between Grace Rembert, Rishi Kumar again, and Kapil Nathan with the latter entering the final three. After Nathan was eliminated, the final two moved on to the Championships – Jonnalagadda and Nair. The latter won the competition.
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References
{{National Geographic Bee
2016 in Washington, D.C.
2016 in education
National Geographic Bee