An international jury selected the 2015 World Beard Champions in the Salzburg holiday region Saalfelden Leogang in October. 318 beard artists presented their extraordinary facial hair-dos to 1,500 visitors. They hailed from 20 countries including Austria, Germany, Switzerland, Great Britain, Spain, Finland, and came from as far away as the United States, Canada, New Zealand, and even the United Arab Emirates.

On the occasion of the World Beard Championships, the Saalfelden Leogang holiday region organized a multi-day event with parades and concerts of local bands. On Saturday, October 3, the championship culminated in several hours of jury assessments. In the end, 18 world beard champions in the main categories “moustache,” “chin-beard,” “muttonchops,” “full beard,” and “trend beard” were selected. Further sub-categories included “musketeer chin-beard,” “imperial muttonchops,” or the most inventive “freestyle full beard.”

“After having been chosen as a venue for the 2005 Beard Olympics and the 2010 European Beard Championship, the Saalfelden Leogang holiday region is very proud to have hosted the 2015 World Beard Championship. We are especially happy that 318 participants from more than 20 countries were able to compete in this event. The event’s strong media presence demonstrates that Saalfelden Leogang is generating robust interest abroad,” says Marco Pointner, managing director of the Saalfelden Leogang Tourism Board.

After winning six world championship titles, the United States emerged as the most successful nation at this year’s event. It was closely followed by Germany with five wins and Austria with four wins. Several hours before the assessments took place, the contestants were busy applying hairspray, gel, and a special kind of wax—often with the aid of their stylists—to achieve a certain kind of wave or look. Beard spans of 1.2 meters were nothing out of the ordinary.

The 2015 World Champions are:

Moustaches:

Natural moustache: Wolfgang Schneider, Germany, “Belle Moustache” Club

English moustache: Patrick Fette, USA

Dali-style moustache: Johnny King, England

Imperial moustache: Jackie Lynn Ellison, USA

Hungarian moustache: Járomi Zsolt, Hungary

Freestyle moustache: Daniel Lawlor, United States

Chin-beards and muttonchops:

Natural chin-beard: Wolfgang Servay, Germany, Die Pforzemer Schnäuz Club

Chinese chin-beard: Patrick Langley, USA

Musketeer chin-beard: Jeffrey Beard, USA

Imperial muttonchops: Gilles Pollinien, France

Freestyle muttonchops and sideburns: Dieter Besuch, Germany, Die Pforzemer Schnäuz Club

Freestyle chin-beard: Norbert Topf, Lilienfeld, Lower Austria, Belle Moustache Club

Full beards:

Verdi-style full beard: Anton Madreiter, Leogang, Austria

Garibaldi-style full beard: Fritz Sendlhofer, Zell am See, Austria, Eastern Bavarian Beard Club

Natural full beard with styled moustache: Hans Gassner, Leogang, Austria, Eastern Bavarian Beard Club

Natural full beard: Madison Rowley, United States, Beard Team USA, Partland Beardsmen

Freestyle full beard: Armin Knapp, Germany, Die Pforzemer Schnäuz Club

Trend beards:

Michael Keller Germany, Die Pforzemer Schnäuz Club

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