AP PHOTOS: 'I won?' Spelling bee champs react

FILE - In this June 8, 1972, file photo, Robin Kral, 14, of Lubbock, Texas, left, holds his trophy after winning the 1972 National Spelling Bee in Washington. He out-spelled Lauren Pringle, 13, right, of Buffalo, N.Y., to win the title. (AP Photo/File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this June 14, 1973, file photo, Barrie Trinkle, 13, of Ft. Worth, Texas, reacts as she wins the 46th Annual National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. She spelled "onomastica" to eliminate her last competitor and spelled "vouchsafe" to clinch the title. (AP Photo/Bob Daugherty, File) (The Associated Press)

FILE - In this May 2, 1980, file photo, Jacques Bailly of Denver Colo., poses for a photo after winning the National Spelling Bee competition in Washington. He correctly spelling the word "elucubrate". (AP Photo/File) (The Associated Press)

Unbridled jubilation. That's the emotion most displayed when champions are crowned for the Scripps National Spelling Bee.

Some will raise their trophies high in the air. Others will cover their mouths in shock. Still more will bow their heads in disbelief. One literally leaped for joy.

Here are four decades worth of images chronicling reactions to being the best speller in the land.

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