Share this @internewscast.com
Melburnian Grayson Huynh, a self-confessed foodie who first used Excel to track restaurant reviews, also made it to the 2024 finals in Vegas — narrowly missing out on the title.
Last year, Melbourne man Grayson Huynh made it into the finals of the Microsoft Excel World Championship. This year, he’s hoping to do one better. Source: Supplied / Grayson Huynh
With this year’s tournament weeks away, Huynh is hoping to improve on his finals finish.
“You hear commentators in the background, you’re on someone else’s computer, there’s a live audience …. it’s like public speaking.”
Inside the world of Excel championships
The competition is livestreamed on YouTube and broadcast on ESPN from Vegas, replete with a live audience, Fox Sports-esque commentators and even a catchy theme song: It’s the Excel World Championship, who’s going in the spreadsheet bin?
“It’s like solving a Rubik’s Cube,” he says.
There are a lot of algorithms, but everyone has different approaches.
His training regimen includes reviewing past cases under timed conditions, consulting other competitors about problem-solving strategies and building mental fortitude.
Between live commentators and an audience watching his every move, Grayson Huynh says strong mental fortitude is key to succeeding in the competition. Source: Supplied / Grayson Huynh
“I didn’t do too well on stage. There were a lot of mental challenges that I wasn’t able to get a hold of,” Huynh says.
“Just like any other sport, mental strength is an area I can overlook.”
The other big league
“I would invent formulas in my sleep and try them out when I woke up.”
Carmina Solares competed in the Microsoft Office Specialist World Championship in 2023, being the only girl and Latin American to place in the top 10. Source: Supplied / Spreadsheet Champions
For the now 18-year-old, placing in the top 10 is more than just a personal accolade.
“I feel like Guatemala isn’t heard of much in these areas. We have limited opportunities,” Solares says.
The ones who can get out are either super smart and win a scholarship, or they’re wealthy.
“A lot of people mistake Excel for being something really benign and boring, but the immediate question is: Why are these people spending so much time dedicating themselves to a competition most people do not care about and have never heard of?” she says.
“But $7,000 to someone in Cameroon is more than a lot of people’s average income for the year.”
Australian documentary Spreadsheet Champions follows six school students as they compete for the title of the best Excel spreadsheeter. Source: Supplied / Spreadsheet Champions
For Kraskov, the documentary’s focus was always about acceptance.
“It was always going to be complete openness and acceptance for people loving what they love and doing what they do best. It shows what you can achieve if you let people who are square pegs go into their square hole and do their square thing,” she says.
A life in the gridlines
Last year, around 600 to 700 people signed up for the MEWC. Huynh made it into the finals — something he counts as a bucket list moment.
I want to do better than last year, but there’s no pressure.
“It’s definitely picking up. I feel like there’s more traction this year … I’m trying to get into the content creation space too,” he says.
Grayson Huynh never thought he’d compete in the Excel championship. But after being egged on by his friends, he decided to throw his hat in the ring. Source: Supplied / Grayson Huynh
Among the competition’s audience are a mix of corporate folk and what Huynh calls “Excel influencers”.
