Punahou sixth-grader is third in geography bee
By Frank Oliveri
Advertiser Washington Bureau
WASHINGTON — Punahou School sixth-grader Eric Liaw knew that Dagestan is a Russian administrative district nestled between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.
Gannett News Service
But yesterday, a question about the region got the best of him and he was eliminated from the National Geographic Bee. Still, the 12-year-old placed third and won a $10,000 college scholarship.
Eric Liaw received a $10,000 scholarship for finishing third in the geography bee. "It's a little overwhelming," he said.
Eric could see the image of the area in his mind as Alex Trebek, host of the TV quiz show "Jeopardy!" read the question: "Dagestan, a region that includes many different ethnic groups, is located just west of what large body of water?"
Earlier, Eric had shown the audience that the Caspian Sea was north of Iran and west of Turkistan by answering a different question. But with this one, he blurted out "The Black Sea," before realizing his mistake. He got sympathetic sighs from the audience.
So ended Eric's run at the 16th annual National Geographic Bee, where he was one of 55 semifinalists to compete in the nation's capital. No rookie to the competition, Eric also represented Hawai'i last year.
"I was surprised (he got it wrong) because he knew the answer," said Eric's mother, Tamya Liaw. "He could have asked him to repeat the question to have a little more time, but he never asked them to repeat the question. He still did a great job. We're very proud of him."
Andrew Wojtanik, a 14-year-old from Kansas took home first prize, a $25,000 college scholarship, a lifetime subscription to National Geographic Magazine and a trip to Sea World in Florida. Matthew Wells, a 13-year-old from Montana, took the second-place prize, a $15,000 scholarship.
Eric, who lives in Wai'alae Iki, also traversed Jakarta, the Caribbean tectonic plate, Poland, the Magellanic penguins of the Falkland Islands, the national anthem of India, the Atacama Desert, Brisbane and Laos during yesterday's finals.
In the end, he was undone by the largest lake in the world. Was he disappointed?
Eric merely shrugged and looked down at his giant-sized $10,000 check. Dozens of photographers and journalists crowded the winners, who were among the 55 boys and girls representing the states, territories, District of Columbia and Defense Department schools.
"It's a little overwhelming ... kind of scary," he said.
He said he was eager to visit the Smithsonian museums and impatient to move on.
"I just want to get there," he said.
