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Surprised? The next World Shearing Championships will be held in...

While the 2017 World Shearing Championships are underway in New Zealand, we've learnt that France will host the next edition.

Shearing championships
Source: World Shearing Championships

The 2019 Championships will take over Le Dorat village, near Limoges, in July. Competitors from over thirty countries will shear 5000 sheep.

They'll compete alone and in teams, being judged on their speed, the quality of the wool shearing and the appearance of the sheep afterwards. 

The 2017 Championships were held this week in Invercargill, New Zealand.

While sheep shearing is recognised as a sport in Australia, New Zealand and other Anglo-Saxon countries, it's not typically been as popular in France. But this could all change in 2019.

Keep an eye out for French champion Christophe Riffaud.

French Ambassador in New Zealand Florence Jeanblanc-Risler said in a statement that the championships would be an opportunity to grow relationships with participating countries.

"Shearing sheep has long been the work of artisans in our countries," she said. "I am talking here of talented professionals who are proud of perfecting their craft and passing it on from one generation to another."

The Embassy of France in Wellington, New Zealand, shared this video of the French crew competing there:


1 min read

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By Audrey Bourget



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