12 camels disqualified from Sh6 billion beauty contest

gloria mari

January 24, 2018 2:11 PM

They were caught using botox

12 camels have been disqualified from a Saudi Arabian beauty contest after they were found to have botox.

They were evicted from the King Abdulaziz Camel Festival for flouting the strict beauty rules.

A cash prize of Sh5.8 billion is taken home by the winning camel during the 28 day event according to the Daily Mail which leads to a lot of pressure to cheat.

The female camel, dubbed Miss Camel, would get a cash prize of Sh3 billion.

Rules from the 2017 contest stated in part, "Camels that are found with drugs in lips, shaved, dyed in any parts of the body, or with changes from natural form are not allowed."

Apart from beauty, judges also inspect racing, obedience training, camel hair art and best photography.

Fawzan al-Madi, chief judge of the event told Reuters, "The camel is a symbol of Saudi Arabia. We used to preserve it out of necessity, now we preserve it as a pastime."

The government has even constructed a permanent venue for the event near Riyadh, Saudi's capital.

Monarchs from the royal family have enhanced the image of the camel festival with a Camel Club board member stating,"‘The vision is for the (festival) to become a global, pioneering forum for all classes of people to come for entertainment, knowledge and competition."

300, 000 people made the trek to witness the glamorized event.

Camels are more than just part of the livestock to the Bedouin. They are a a way of life which provides transport and food.

As Saudi Arabia seeks to embrace more change after permitting women to drive and getting a movie theatre, the Camel Festival will ease the transition by celebrating various aspects of their traditional culture.

gloria mari