Flyers

Kid Wearing a Sunderland Jersey Wins New York Spelling Bee by Getting “Dvorak” Correct

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Mar 17th, 2026 · 9:37 AM EDT

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This made me laugh:

Congratulations to Liam from P.S. 32 in Queens for taking home the gold during this year’s NYC Spelling Bee! 🏆

We are so proud of the dozens of @nycschools students who participated in the two days of competition, including runner-ups Dylan from I.S. 73 and Jose from I.S. 230! pic.twitter.com/n9A6crBEV0

— NYC Public Schools (@NYCSchools) March 16, 2026

Kid: Can you please use ‘Dvorak’ in a sentence?

Moderator: “The Philadelphia Flyers’ decision to give Christian Dvorak a five-year extension was seen as controversial by a large portion of the fan base.”

lol

Honestly had no idea that “dvorak” was anything but a proper noun used to identify Czech composers or ice hockey centers. Apparently it’s a type of keyboard that is supposed to be more ergonomic and efficient than the typical QWERTY setup we use in the States. Who knew? Not me!

By the way, this kid is wearing a Sunderland jersey. Not Barcelona or Man City or PSG, but Sunderland, who are currently 13th in the Premier League with 10 wins, 10 draws, and 10 losses. Perfectly balanced, like Joel Embiid playing the same amount of NBA games that he’s missed. This is a #5 Danny Ballard shirt, and Ballard is a center half from Northern Ireland. Again, not Messi, not Ronaldo, not Neymar, not Mbappe, but Danny Ballard.

So, to recap, we have a young Asian boy named “Liam” winning a New York City spelling bee by getting “Dvorak” correct while wearing a Sunderland kit. We truly are the world’s melting pot.