More than 160 sprinters competed in a snail race organized as part of an annual World Championship in the United Kingdom. In the final, when an English teacher named Maria Wilby passed through the snail she chose, the race ended.
The competition for mollusks is held in a world championship held since the 1960s at a table with a damp cloth. Three circles identify the top of the competition. The snails are placed around the edge of the middle circle as the starting line for the first snail to reach the outer circle.
The contestant is entitled to choose between bringing his own snail or choosing one of the snails provided by the organizer on the day of the contest.
In 1995, a new world record was recorded in the Guinness Book of World Records when the snail finished the 33-centimeter race in two minutes and 20 seconds.
To organize these tournaments, each participant and local competitor pays a sum of money for each helix participating in the race, directing the money raised to a local charity, and the next World Championships will be held in July 2020.