An eighth grader from Palm Harbor, Fla., proved a little bit of knowledge can go a long way.

For 13-year-old Aadith Moorthy, knowledge of Caribbean neighbor Haiti helped him come out on top when he went head-to-head with 10 boys in this year's National Geographic Bee.

The final question asked for the largest city in northern Haiti, which was renamed following Haiti's independence from France. After giving the correct answer, which is "Cap-Haitien," the middle-schooler gave a small fist pump.

"I feel great," Moorthy said, smiling broadly. "The mission is accomplished."

This year more than 4 million students took part in state and local competitions in hopes of making it to Washington, D.C., for the event, hosted by Alex Trebek.

The jubilant eighth grader shared his strategy for winning the competition.

"I have a coach and he told me I must seek 20 facts a day for four months," he said. "I did that and then I reviewed all those facts and that was really helpful for me."

Moorthy won a $25,000 scholarship and a lifetime membership to the National Geographic Society, along with a trip to the Galapagos Islands.