Hostel Hosts First Sheep Shearing Contest

Kex Hostel hosted their first annual sheep shearing contest in downtown Reykjavík yesterday. Skilled farmers from all over traveled to compete for the coveted Golden Shears, reports RÚV.

Six farmers competed in total and following some prompting from the audience one female contestant went as far as using her shears to cut a man’s hair. Apparently the man’s hair looks pretty good, considering. The contestant who cut the man’s hair, Heiða Guðný Ásgeirsdóttir, says she plans to stick to shearing sheep going forward.

The victor, Julio Cesar Gutierrez, is a champion sheep shearer and has been shearing sheep across the globe for 30 years.

“I started in Uruguay, where I was born and often traveled to Argentina and Patagonia. I have also sheared in Spain and Mallorca and then here in [Iceland].

This year alone Julio has sheared roughly 2.500 sheep and says the key is to know how to handle them.

“If you get her in the right position, so that she’s comfortable, then she’ll be still,” Julio said. “If she feels uncomfortable then she’ll start to complain.”

The sheep were sourced from nearby farm Hraðastaðir in Mosfellsdalur and
the competition was closely supervised by an on-site veterinarian.