Monday started with over 400 extempers wishing to walk out of Birmingham, Alabama with a national championship, but that field has been narrowed to 12 and only two of those will leave Birmingham as the 2013 NFL International Extemp and 2013 NFL United States Extemp national champions.
Half of the International Extemp final is composed of finalists from last year’s event in Indianapolis. Ashesh Rambachan of Eastview High School (Minnesota) will be seeking a successful defense of his International Extemp championship, which has never happened in NFL history. If Rambachan were to win the final round it would also be the first time that an extemper has won back-to-back final round championships in the same extemporaneous speaking category. Rambachan is joined by last year’s third place finisher Lily Nellans of Des Moines Roosevelt High School (Iowa) and last year’s fifth place finisher Kohinoor Gill of Desert Vista High School (Arizona). Nellans teammate Nathan Leys gives the Des Moines Roosevelt powerhouse two extempers in this year’s International Extemp final and Arizona has another extemper in the final, Lyubov Kapko. Allison McKibban of El Dorado High School (Kansas) is appearing in her first NFL final after having back-to-back third place finishes at CFL Nationals the last two seasons.
In United States Extemp, Chase Harrison of Millburn High School (New Jersey), who took sixth at last year’s national tournament, returns to the final round and will square off against a field of distinguished national circuit and state-level extempers. Two-time Oklahoma United States Extemp 3A state champion Arel Rende and this year’s Virginia Group 3A state champion, Josh Wartel, are in the final round. No state was able to get two extempers to the USX final round.
Extemp Central congratulates all of the finalists. With NFL providing a live stream of this year’s finals, we plan on providing a recap of the action on Friday.
International Extemp
Kohinoor Gill (Desert Vista HS, Arizona)
Lyubov Kapko (Tempe Preparatory Academy, Arizona)
Nathan Leys (Des Moines Roosevelt HS, Iowa)
Allison McKibban (El Dorado HS, Kansas)
Lily Nellans (Des Moines Roosevelt HS, Iowa)
Asheshananda Rambachan (Eastview HS, Minnesota)
United States Extemp
Carunya Achar (Cypress Creek HS, Texas)
Chase Harrison (Millburn HS, New Jersey)
Christopher Jordan (Brophy College Prep, Arizona)
Arel Rende (Tulsa Washington HS, Oklahoma)
Adam M Stromme (Eagan HS, Minnesota)
Joshua Wartel (Lake Braddock Secondary HS, Virginia)
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