Paul TostoThe National Geographic Bee is hands-down the best of the student academic competitions. The 2012 national finals start today — and our guy is in it.
By our guy, I mean Gopi Ramanathan from Sartell.
I’ve covered lots of student academic competitions over the years but the state geographic bee was always my favorite. These are mostly middle school-aged kids and their knowledge of place is amazing. You might be able to guess your way to the finals of the national Spelling Bee, not the Geographic Bee.
If fact, I double dare you to try today’s quiz.
The finals start this morning. The winner gets a $25,000 college scholarship and a trip to the Galápagos Islands, as well as permanent membership in the National Geographic Society.
As a society, we spend a lot of time rallying around sports teams. How about a collective cheer for a kid who, as the St. Cloud Times reports, “answered eight of nine questions correctly and then qualified for the finals by answering additional questions after 12 students were tied for the final six spots.”
Bonus: Gopi and a few other students spoke to NPR about the competition
Double Bonus: Cottonwood’s Nathan Cornelius won the 2005 Geographic Bee .
— Paul Tosto