Der König ist gefallen!

(Photo courtesy of the Berlin Beard Club)
The King is dead!

Günter Rosin, 2003 world champ in the Ungarisch (Wild West) category and all-around cool guy, came to Berlin riding a wining streak in his category longer than Lance Armstrong's in the Tour de France. The streak stretched all the way back to the WBMC 1997 in Trondheim, Norway. At the last three WBMC's, he narrowly beat out the American challenger, the Whisker Club's Bruce Roe, who was second in 1999, second in 2001, and third in 2003.

No wonder Günter, who recently changed club affiliation from Belle Moustache to East Bavaria, was the odds-on favorite to five-peat.

Shock!

Günter had to settle for second in Berlin. Bruce was third. Who took gold? Newcomer Rainer Frech, representing none other than Belle Moustache. Evidently Jürgen Burkhart, Belle Moustache's president, couldn't stomach the thought of this category going to another club, so he somehow performed magic and recruited Rainer.

Es lebe der König! Long live the King!