The 2013 extemporaneous speaking season has ended with the crowning of two new national champions at NFL Nationals. In International Extemp, Nathan Leys of Des Moines Roosevelt High School (Iowa) stopped Ashesh Rambachan of Eastview High School (Minnesota) from repeating as national champion and became the first Iowan extemper in the modern era (defined as the beginning of the USX/IX split) to win extemporaneous speaking at NFL Nationals. However, Rambachan did win the national final round, thereby becoming the first extemper in NFL history to repeat as final round national champion in the same extemporaneous speaking category. This is also the third consecutive year that an extemper from Minnesota has won the national final round championship in International Extemp. The two underclassmen in the final, Lyubov Kapko of Tempe Preparatory School (Arizona) and Lily Nellans of Des Moines Roosevelt High School (Iowa), placed third and fifth, respectively.
In an underclassmen dominated United States Extemp final, Arel Rende of Tulsa Washington High School (Oklahoma), a two-time state champion, won an undisputed championship by winning the overall title and the national final round title. Like Leys in International Extemp, Rende becomes the first Oklahoma extemper in the modern era to capture a national championship at NFL. Since all of the finalists in the U.S. Extemp final were underclassmen, it is possible that next year’s final in Kansas could be a complete rematch of this round.
Extemp Central congratulates all of the finalists and this year’s national champions and their coaches.