Johndell Cumberbatch is unlikely to ever forget how to spell exhilaration — his perfect execution of the word on Saturday night helped him win a Disney holiday for his family.

The eight-year-old East End Primary School pupil was the champion of Spelldown 2009, beating eight other bright sparks in a battle of the brains at Mount Saint Agnes Academy to take home the trophy.

But Johndell, of St. George's, wasn't motivated to brush up his word skills by the top prize of a cruise for four to Disney World courtesy of the Ministry of Education.

He told The Royal Gazette: "I thought I was going to win. I entered the competition because I really wanted to bring the cup home to East End."

He added: "The most difficult word was exhilaration. My favourite word was carnivore because I'm a carnivore sometimes and carnivore is the easiest word."

All nine contestants on Saturday had to prove their proficiency at English by stepping up to the microphone to spell out a series of words in front of an audience of cheering family and friends.

Johndell's dad Joseph admitted there were some "anxious moments" including when his son misspelt a word in the early stages of the contest and his "battle" near the end for the number one spot with first runner-up Mira Hartwig, of Saltus Grammar School.

"It was nerve-racking," said Mr. Cumberbatch, who is originally from Guyana. "It's like sitting on the edge of your seat hoping that he just gets it right.

"He said he was a bit nervous beforehand. We tried to encourage him not to be.

"I told Johndell it would be good to win but look beyond the competition at the benefit of having a good vocabulary. The result was what we were hoping for."

Mr. Cumberbatch said the whole family — including Johndell's mom Maudlyn and seven-year-old sister Jewell — helped him revise for the national spelling bee, which was launched five years ago by Bermuda College.

And he said teachers Rose Smith Douglas, Tamicia Darrell and Verna Wilkinson also deserved thanks.

Ms Douglas suggested Johndell skip a year of primary school which meant he was able to enter Spelldown 2008 as a P4 student and become runner-up.

This year's Spelldown — at which Premier Ewart Brown gave out the prizes — was the last to be organised by the college, which is passing the mantle to the Ministry of Education.

College marketing assistant Duane Richards said: "It was a great success. There was a great turnout and everybody had a good time.

"It was very challenging and all the contestants did a great job. I think it was a good closing to the event for the college."

Sponsored prizes this year included laptop computers, pedal bicycles, iPod Nanos and MP3 players. The second runner-up was Brandon Johnson, from Warwick Academy.