NSW spelling bee winner crowned after fierce competition

Are you smarter than this fourth grader?

The annual NSW Premier's spelling bee was today, with the state's top 30 spellers battling for the crown in Penrith, in Sydney's west.

After a battle of the best and brightest second and third graders, nine-year-old Wafiq Ayyash from New Lambton in Newcastle came out as the victor.

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The winning word was treachery.

Ayyash told 9News he was ecstatic to win the competition.

"It feels amazing, I think I'm going to put it in our school trophy cabinet," Ayyash said.

"I was thinking if I could make it or not, I was confident I could make it.

"I was relieved that [the word] wasn't that hard. That moment was amazing."

Bobby Ivaneza from Annandale Public was the runner-up.

Premier Chris Minns was in attendance for the coveted event.

"This spelling bee gives some of our brightest students a chance to show their spelling skills while having a bit of fun," Minns said.

More than 1800 students competed in 60 regional finals over 10 days to make it to the state finals.

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Of those 1800, 303 speak a language other than English at home and 95 students were from Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander backgrounds.

"The Spelling Bee shows just how inclusive our public education system is – any student, regardless of where they live, can compete and be a contender for the top honours," Education Minister Prue Car said.

Some of the other words that the kids were asked to spell included fallacy, gargantuan, saucepan, casual, cautious and freesia.