Confetti falls after Ansun Sujoe, left, of Fort Worth, Texas, and Sriram Hathwar of Painted Post, New York, both won the 2014 Scripps National Spelling Bee competition on Thursday, May 29, in National Harbor, Maryland. Hathwar and Sujoe were declared as co-champions after 22 rounds of the competition. Sujoe spelled the word "feuilleton" and Hathwar spelled the word "stichomythia." They both spelled their words correctly as they exhausted the words on the bee's list. They were the first co-champions since 1962. More than 250 students from the United States and seven other countries gathered to compete in the annual contest. 
Hathwar, right, looks on as Sujoe correctly spells "feuilleton," making them both this years champions. 
Jacob Daniel Williamson, of Cape Coral, Florida, reacts after correctly spelling a word Thursday, May 29, during the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Oxon Hill, Maryland. 
Tejas Muthusamy, of Glen Allen, Virginia, reacts after he correctly spelled a word on May 29. 
Kate Miller, of Abilene, Texas, reacts after learning she spelled the word "brachypterous" correctly on May 29. 
Jae Canetti, of Fairfax, Virginia, cringes after incorrectly spelling a word on May 29. 
Timothy Lau, of Torrance, California, reacts after correctly spelling a word on May 29. 
Paul Keaton, of Pikeville, Kentucky, competes on May 29. 
Shayley Grace Martin, of Riner, Virginia, reacts after she correctly spelled a word on May 29. 
Ethan S. Perrins, of Lawrence, Kansas, closes his eyes while spelling a word on Wednesday, May 28. 
Naama Friedman, of Knoxville, Tennessee, participates in the spelling bee on May 28. 
From left, Dylan O'Connor, of Alexandria Bay, New York; Tajaun Gibbison, of Mandeville, Jamaica; Tea Freedman-Susskind, of Redmond, Washington; and Ankita Vadiala, of Manassas, Virginia, celebrate May 28 after qualifying for the semifinal round. 
Alexandra Harper, of Guayama, Puerto Rico, concentrates before spelling the word "bildungsroman" on May 28. 
Jessie Skylar Williams, of Traverse City, Michigan, reacts after misspelling a word on May 28. 
Joel Miles, of Raymore, Mississippi, pumps his fist after correctly spelling the word "sporran" on May 28. 
Kasey Cuenca Torres, of San Angelo, Texas, shows relief after spelling a word correctly on May 28. 
Ed Horan, of Hoboken, New Jersey, correctly spells the word "fantoccini" on May 28. 
Isabelle Marie Simmons, of Annapolis, Maryland, reacts after misspelling a word on May 28. 
Anika Patel, of Gilberts, Illinois, reacts after correctly spelling the word "luxuriate" on May 28. 
Amber Robinson, of Homestead, Florida, concentrates before incorrectly spelling the word "pelagial" on May 28. 
Zander Reed, of Ames, Iowa, closes his eyes and spells the word "precipice" on May 28. 
Seongjun Lee, of Seoul, South Korea, concentrates before missing the word "apparatchik" on May 28. 
Sean Hickey, of Grass Lake, Michigan, participates in the competition on May 28.
- President Obama tweeted praise to the "incredible co-champs"
- "The competition was against the dictionary, not against each other," one winner says
- It's the first time two champions have been declared in more than 50 years
- The last time the spelling bee ended in a tie was 1962, organizers said
(CNN) -- Sriram Hathwar and Ansun Sujoe correctly spelled so many words Thursday that the Scripps National Spelling Bee had to declare them both winners.
Why? Because there weren't enough words left on the competition's list for them to keep facing off until only one was left standing.
In the bee's final round, Hathwar, a 14-year-old eighth-grader from Painted Post, New York, correctly spelled the word "stichomythia" -- dialogue especially of altercation delivered by two actors.
Sujoe, a 13-year-old seventh-grader from Fort Worth, Texas, correctly spelled the word "feuilleton" -- part of a European newspaper.
Ansun Sujoe, left, and Sriram Hathwar became co-champions of the 2014 Scripps National Spelling Bee competition Sujoe spelled the word "feuilleton" and Hathwar spelled the word "stichomythia." They both spelled their words correctly as they exhausted the words on the bee's list, becoming the first co-champions since 1962. 
Arvind Mahankali won the 2013 Scripps National Spelling Bee after spelling "knaidel," which is a dumpling. Click through to see the rest of the winners from the past 15 years. The definitions of their winning words are from the Merriam-Webster dictionary. 
Snigdha Nandipati won in 2012 with the word "guetapens," which means an ambush. 
Sukanya Roy won in 2011 with the word "cymotrichous," an adjective that means "having the hair wavy." 
Anamika Veeramani won in 2010 with the word "stromuhr," which is an instrument that measures the amount and speed of blood flow through an artery. 
Kavya Shivashankar won in 2009 when she correctly spelled "laodicean," which means lukewarm or indifferent, particularly in matters of politics or religion. 
Sameer Mishra won in 2008 with the word "guerdon," which is a reward or recompense. 
Evan O'Dorney won in 2007 with the word "serrefine," small forceps used for clamping a blood vessel. 
Katharine Close won in 2006 by correctly spelling "ursprache," a language that is reconstructed from evidence of later languages. 
Anurag Kashyap won in 2005 with the word "appoggiatura," a smaller embellishing note or tone that precedes a melodic note or tone. 
David Tidmarsh won in 2004 with the word "autochthonous," an adjective that means indigenous or native. 
Sai R. Gunturi won in 2003 with the word "pococurante," meaning indifferent or nonchalant. 
Pratyush Buddiga won in 2002 with the word "prospicience," which is the act of looking forward or having foresight. 
Sean Conley won in 2001 with "succedaneum," defined as "a substitute." 
George Abraham Thampy won in 2000 with the French word "démarche," meaning a course of action, typically in politics. 
Nupur Lala won in 1999 with the word "logorrhea," meaning excessive and incoherent talkativeness or wordiness. 
Jody-Anne Maxwell won in 1998 after correctly spelling "chiaroscurist," which is an artist who specializes in chiaroscuro, or contrasting the effects of light and shade in a work of art. National Spelling Bee champions
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This year's spelling bee champ is .... 
Spelling bee runs out of ... words? It's the first time the bee has ended in a tie in more than 50 years. The last time there were co-champions was in 1962, organizers said. Ties also ended the bees in 1950 and 1957.
"I think we both know that the competition was against the dictionary, not against each other," Hathwar said on ESPN after the win. "I am happy to share this trophy with him."
The two quickly garnered praise from high office. President Obama tweeted his kudos: "Congrats to Ansun and Sriram, the incredible co-champs of the #ScrippsNationalSpellingBee. You make us all proud! -bo"
In this year's national championship, 281 spellers from eight countries competed for the title. The contest started Tuesday and finished up Thursday night with the finals broadcast live on ESPN.
Sujoe told ESPN that he got hooked on the bee by watching it on television. In addition to spelling, he has perfect pitch and plays piano, bassoon and guitar.
"I was pretty happy when I made the finals, and now I'm even happier that I'm a co-champion," Sujoe said.
Hathwar, who placed third in last year's competition and first made it to the National Spelling Bee as a second-grader in 2008, was a favorite to win this year's contest.
The youngest competitor this year was 8 years old. And the oldest was 15 years old, organizers said.
Even students who didn't walk away with a trophy seemed excited about their next steps.
Tejas Muthusamy, 11, said he'd return home ready to change his studying routine for future competitions.
"Now I'll prepare more for the finals, and try to go through more esoteric words," Muthusamy said, minutes after misspelling "hallenkirche" got him kicked out of the competition.
Eighth grader Kate Miller, who struck out in the finals when she misspelled the world "exochorion," said there's a lot she'll be bringing back to Abilene, Texas.
"I will take home with me a suitcase full of happy memories, great friends and a true feeling of acceptance," she told ESPN.
And she didn't hesitate when asked what her next move would be.
"I don't need to study spelling anymore, and I don't really need to sleep anymore," she said. "So I'm going to go home and watch every horror movie on which I can get my hands."
READ: The agony and ecstasy of the National Spelling Bee
READ: National contest isn't bee-all and end-all
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