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Why nearly every Scripps Bee finalist has a coach — and why one stands above the rest

Denver7 · · 1234 words · By AP
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What to know about Why nearly every Scripps Bee finalist has a coach — and why one stands above the rest

When Dev Shah won the Scripps National Spelling Bee in 2023 and Faizan Zaki took the title last year, they posed for remarkably similar photos on the confetti-strewn stage.

Claims checked 23
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center100%
Right0%

6 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

When Dev Shah won the Scripps National Spelling Bee in 2023 and Faizan Zaki took the title last year, they posed for remarkably similar photos on the confetti-strewn stage.

Why it matters

Standing next to them, beaming, was a bespectacled man in an aloha shirt, holding up a copy of his book “Words of Wisdom.” For Scott Remer, the champion spellers' coach, posing for a picture was more than just a celebration.

Common ground

While nearly every National Spelling Bee champion over the past 15 years has worked with a coach, the 32-year-old Remer is the country's only full-time, professional tutor for elite spellers.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.denver7.com/entertainment/scripps-spelling-bee/why-nearly-every-scri…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 23 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

schedule Pending 13
check_circle Corroborated 6
verified Verified By Reference 2
help Insufficient Evidence 2
verified
Claim 1: “Faizan Zaki took the title last year”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia confirms Faizan Zaki won the 97th Scripps National Spelling Bee, which is the most recent competition mentioned in the evidence.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 97th Scripps National Spelling Bee was a spelling bee competition held at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland. The bee marked a special milestone with its …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/97th_Scripps_National_Spelling…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Faizan Zaki is an Indian-American spelling bee contestant known for winning the 97th Scripps National Spelling Bee that marks the 100th anniversary of the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Faizan Zaki wa…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faizan_Zaki
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Scripps National Spelling Bee (formerly the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee and commonly called the National Spelling Bee) is an annual spelling bee held in the United States. The competitio…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Scripps_National_Spell…
+ 3 more evidence sources
schedule
Claim 2: “Walters, a graduate student in linguistics at the University of Kentucky”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
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Claim 3: “Remer has coached five national champions”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results explicitly state that the 32-year-old Remer has coached five national champions.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of some notable people who have lived in the City and County of Denver, Colorado, United States. People born elsewhere but raised in Denver are marked with a §. People born and raised e…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_from_Denver
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web search NEUTRAL — Scott Remer is an experienced spelling coach with 12 years of experience tutoring students to prepare them for victory at the National Spelling Bee.
https://www.spellingbeebook.com/coach
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web search NEUTRAL — 3 hours ago ... ... Scripps National Spelling Bee. The 32-year-old Remer has coached five national champions, including two of the...
https://www.theintelligencer.com/sports/article/scott-remer-…
+ 1 more evidence source
help
Claim 4: “Remer describes coaching as a passion that grew out of his disappointing fourth-place finish in 2008”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to confirm or deny Scott Remer's 2008 finish position.
schedule
Claim 5: “He has published three other books and has worked for the Council on Foreign Relations and as the communications coordinator for an LGBTQ-friendly synagogue in New York.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
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Claim 6: “He claims 34 spellers as his students this year and has worked with no fewer than 29 during each of the past four bees.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results report that Remer claims 34 students this year and has worked with at least 29 during each of the past four bees.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 14 hours ago ... He claims 34 spellers as his students this year and has worked with no fewer than 29 during each of the past four bees. He charges more than ...
https://www.newsday.com/news/nation/national-spelling-bee-co…
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web search NEUTRAL — 11 hours ago ... Recent Posts · Free spelling bee study app for kids.
https://www.facebook.com/Local4/posts/scott-remer-the-only-f…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 17 hours ago ... 35 likes, 3 comments - krem2 on May 22, 2026: "One student from Seattle, Washington and three Idaho students -- including two from Coeur ...
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DYqTkGqj-RY/
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Claim 7: “the 32-year-old Remer is the country's only full-time, professional tutor for elite spellers”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web search results describe Scott Remer as the country's only full-time, professional coach for elite spellers.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Donald Trump's second and current tenure as the president of the United States began upon his inauguration as the 47th president on January 20, 2025. Trump, a Republican, previously served as the 45th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_presidency_of_Donald_Tr…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Terra Eve Lawson-Remer ( TERR-ə LAW-suhn REE-mur; born July 1978) is an American educator and politician serving as chair of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors since 2025. A member of the Democ…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terra_Lawson-Remer
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The United States UFO files, also referred to as the UFO files or the UAP files, are a collection of declassified United States government records concerning UFOs, also called unidentified anomalous p…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_UFO_files
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 8: “He charges more than other coaches: up to $180 for an hourlong private lesson.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources (including ABC4 Utah and Fox 59) confirm Remer charges up to $180 for an hourlong private lesson.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 13 hours ago ... He charges more than other coaches: up to $180 for an hourlong private lesson. If spellers finish in the top 10 and earn a cash prize, he ...
https://abcnews.com/US/wireStory/scott-remer-full-time-spell…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 14 hours ago ... He charges more than other coaches: up to $180 for an hourlong private lesson. If spellers finish in the top 10 and earn a cash prize, he ...
https://www.abc4.com/news/entertainment-news/ap-entertainmen…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 11 hours ago ... Scott Remer, the only full-time spelling bee coach, charges $180 an hour. Champs say he's worth it.
https://www.facebook.com/Local4/posts/scott-remer-the-only-f…
schedule
Claim 9: “His first study guide, “Words of Wisdom: Keys to Success in the Scripps National Spelling Bee,” was published in 2010”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 10: “Navneeth Murali... charging roughly $50 for an hourlong lesson.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 11: “Remer graduated from Yale in 2016 and earned a master's degree from Cambridge a year later.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
verified
Claim 12: “Dev Shah won the Scripps National Spelling Bee in 2023”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
Wikipedia explicitly lists Dev Shah as the winner of the 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee, and web search results confirm he is the 2023 champion.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Dev Shah may refer to: Dev Shah, main character played by Aziz Ansari on Master of None Dev Shah, winner of the 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dev_Shah
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Largo is the third largest city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, and the fourth largest in the Tampa Bay area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 82,485, up from 77,648 in …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Largo,_Florida
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The 95th Scripps National Spelling Bee was a spelling bee competition that was held at Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center in National Harbor, Maryland. The 2023 bee welcomed 231 spellers from…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/95th_Scripps_National_Spelling…
+ 3 more evidence sources
help
Claim 13: “Zaki Anwar... negotiated a reduced rate of $120 an hour for Remer's services”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding a negotiated rate for Faizan Zaki's father.
schedule
Claim 14: “Grace Walters, who coached 2022 champion Harini Logan, charges $75 an hour.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
check_circle
Claim 15: “If spellers finish in the top 10 and earn a cash prize, he receives up to 10% of their winnings”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent sources confirm that Remer receives up to 10% of a student's cash prize if they finish in the top 10.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 3 hours ago ... He charges more than other coaches: up to $180 for an hourlong private lesson. If spellers finish in the top 10 and earn a cash prize, he ...
https://www.theintelligencer.com/sports/article/scott-remer-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 7 hours ago ... He charges more than other coaches: up to $180 for an hourlong private lesson. If spellers finish in the top 10 and earn a cash prize, he ...
https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2026/05/23/national-sp…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 14 hours ago ... He charges more than other coaches: up to $180 for an hourlong private lesson. If spellers finish in the top 10 and earn a cash prize, he ...
https://fox59.com/news/entertainment/ap-entertainment/ap-sco…
schedule
Claim 16: “Remer has written an op-ed about the bee for the Guardian every year since 2019.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 17: “Born and raised in the Cleveland suburbs, he now lives in Mexico City.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 18: “Remer took home 7% of the champion's prize haul of $52,500 — a bonus of $3,675.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
check_circle
Claim 19: “the field of 247 spellers at this year's bee — which begins Tuesday and concludes Thursday in Washington”
CORROBORATED
Web search results from May 2026 confirm the Scripps National Spelling Bee returned to Washington, D.C. and welcomed 247 spellers.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — A spelling bee is a competition in which contestants are asked to spell a broad selection of words, usually with a varying degree of difficulty. To compete, contestants must memorize the spellings of …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spelling_bee
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Scripps National Spelling Bee (formerly the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee and commonly called the National Spelling Bee) is an annual spelling bee held in the United States. The competitio…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Scripps_National_Spell…
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Scripps National Spelling Bee, formerly the Scripps Howard National Spelling Bee and often referred to as the National Spelling Bee or simply “the Spelling Bee” in the United States, is an annual …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scripps_National_Spelling_Bee
+ 3 more evidence sources
schedule
Claim 20: “Simone Kaplan, who finished runner-up to the “octo-champs” of 2019”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 21: “Scripps, the Cincinnati-based media company that has run the Bee for a century”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 22: “That was also the year he coached his first champion, Anamika Veeramani.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
schedule
Claim 23: “Sree Vidya Siliveri was coached by Remer before her 60th-place finish in 2024... and finished 10th in 2025.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.