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For security reasons, only select people were allowed inside the grand ballroom at the Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista in Florida, last July.
Yet all they’d see behind the plush doors was Xavier Diebold, 19, and nine others sitting behind a computer, typing on Microsoft Excel.
Xavier, who lives two miles north of Chicago, Illinois, was representing the US in the Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) World Championships.
‘I was familiar with Google Sheets, but Excel was a completely different world, and I was amazed by its capabilities,’ Xavier tells Metro.
‘Over time, I became obsessed with learning every little bit of the application until I felt fluent in it.
‘My time at the Championship was incredible – a trip I’ll never forget. I was lucky enough to bring my girlfriend along.’
The Championships, in its 24th year, sees students aged 13 to 22 flex their Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Adobe skills.
It’s split into software-specific competitions, called tracks, with tasks that involve designing something for a non-profit within 100 minutes.
This could be a brief to create a slideshow using specific effects, or a web of spreadsheets that include mind-bending formulas and data validation.
This year’s competition kicks off on Tuesday, with 190 competitors from 46 countries flying to the Disney Grand Californian Hotel and Spa in Anaheim, California, for it.
In 2025, Xavier showed that he, well, excels in Excel (‘I haven’t heard that one before,’ he says) by creating documents for Limbitless Solutions, which makes 3D-printed bionic arms.
‘What really stuck with me was seeing kids from around the world proudly representing their countries,’ Xavier says, ‘which in turn made me more competitive and prouder to represent mine.’
Xavier won silver, $4,000 and, of course, the glory of being one of the world’s best spreadsheeters. (First prize is a novelty-sized check for $8,000, though sadly a paper clip with googly eyes doesn’t hand it out.)
Yes, Xavier really did win that much for tapping on Excel.
Most people think of Excel, which crams words and numbers into tiny white squares, as the manifestation of office boredom or how their weirdly organised friends stay on top of life.
According to Xavier, it’s a bit more than that.
‘A lot of Excel, as well as the other Microsoft applications, comes down to being able to find a function you’ve never used before,’ Xavier says.
‘It matters less whether you already know something and more if you can figure out how to find it on the fly.’
Organisers say that being skilled at using Microsoft 365 – the tech giant’s software package – is more than just something to list on your CV.
‘These competitors are proving they can apply those skills under pressure and move one step closer to achieving the life they imagine for themselves,’ says Ty Kentoworth, business development lead at Pearson.
Take Eleni Karakasidou, 19, from Thessaloniki, Greece.
Out of 10 keyboard-mashers with a knack for PowerPoint, she took home gold – and she did a little more than add whoosh transition effects.
Eleni first tried PowerPoint in primary school and made presentations in her free time, such as one about her family tree.
‘I was absolutely fascinated by how you could bring seemingly cold, static words and images to life,’ she says. ‘To a child, there was a real touch of magic to it.’
She had never heard of the MOS Championships until her teacher, Mr Panagiotis Aslanidis, suggested she apply.
Hallie Mitchell, 22, similarly hadn’t heard of the competition before applying.
The graphic designer at Taxi Studio, an agency in Bristol, taught herself how to use the image-editing tool Adobe Photoshop at college.
Within a few years, she won silver in the Adobe round of the Championships.
‘I decided to compete in the Championships just as a bit of fun, never imagining that I would end up as the second-place champion,’ she says.
‘Being able to travel to America for the first time was an amazing experience, so the medal was the cherry on top.
Hallie created posters and social media posts for Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), a non-profit inspiring young innovators.
‘I think having an eye for the little details is so valuable, along with the creative flair and together that really brings ideas to life in the best way possible,’ she adds.
The MOS Championship is the only Microsoft Office technology skills competition endorsed by Microsoft.
On top of big-league glory – and an excuse to geek out with fellow tech buffs – organisers started it to encourage young people to try the Microsoft Office Specialist certification programme.
Xavier remembers when he loaded Excel for the first time while working towards the certificate at school.
His teacher pulled him aside one day to say he had scored the highest in the state in the Excel exam, so he was on track to represent the US.
Now he has people messaging him online, asking him for advice on how to get fame and fortune in the world of competitive Microsoft Excel-ing.
‘Don’t spend the whole trip stressed out about the competition; just qualifying is a huge achievement, and opportunities like this don’t come around often, so enjoy it,’ Xavier says.
‘And of course, make sure to review your pivot tables!’
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