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The Scripps National Spelling Bee was canceled on Tuesday for the first time since World War II, in light of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak.

Scripps said the bee will return next year and is scheduled for June 1-3, 2021, according to The Associated Press.

“I’m totally shattered and devastated,” Navneeth Murali, 14, told the AP. “Spelling has basically been my life for so many years. ... I put all my effort into the chance of winning Scripps, and this morning I found out it was all gone.”

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The bee's executive director and 1981 champion, Paige Kimble, expressed sympathy for the spellers and compared them to students who will miss their graduations because of the pandemic.

“My heart goes out to every one of those kids affected. As a former speller, all I can say is I can only imagine, and my heart breaks for them,” she said. “Our eighth-grade spellers are much like the class of 2020 high school seniors, in the ranks of many, enduring heartbreak as a result of these pandemic circumstances.”

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Scripps said in a statement, that “the Bee has determined there is no clear path to safely set a new date in 2020."

The Associated Press contributed to this report