Who conquered the World Conker Championships this year?
- Published
- comments
The World Conker Championships returned to Northamptonshire last weekend for the 55th year!
More than 100 children came to the village of Southwick to watch the event, or prepare for battle.
Thousands of people travelled to be there including from Scotland, Ukraine, Japan, Canada and the USA.
Oliver took home the title for Junior Champion and Liam came Runner Up in the children's competition.
The World Conker Champion for the Men was Randy Topolnitsky and Fee Aylmore was the Women's World Conker Champion.
St John Burkett, who is a member of the organising committee, said: "This year, we were worried that, with the very hot weather, and the drought, the conkers wouldn't be good.
"But very late on, they grew massively, and we had some of the biggest conkers we have ever had, although they were rather soft and easy to break.
"Randy [The Men's World Conker Champion] is also a newcomer to conkers, and this sometimes happens when the luck is with you, and you draw the right nuts. It means success is open to anyone," he said.
John also added they are "very happy" that this year, the World Championship title has gone abroad because one of the champions Randy is Canadian.
Children aged 7-11 took part in the junior competitions
Use a strong, hard conker that is a few years old.
Dip your conker in vinegar.
Bake your conker in an oven (with a parent's help!)
Choose a conker that is firm, un-cracked and symmetrical.
Top tips on how to swing a conker
How to play conkers
All the competitors had to follow a strict set of rules to ensure the competition was as fair as possible.
The conkers, which are the seeds of a horse chestnut tree, and laces are provided by the World Conker Championships.
If a player misses hitting his/her opponents conker they are allowed up to two further goes.
If the strings tangle, the first player to call "strings" gets an extra shot.
If a player hits his/her opponents conker in such a way that it completes a whole circle after being hit - known as 'round the world' - the player gets another go.
If a player drops his conker, or it is knocked out of his hand the other player can shout 'stamps' and jump on it; but should its owner first cry 'no stamps' then the conker, hopefully, remains intact.
People who attended the Championships also dressed up in costumes - bee outfits, Spider-Man, there was an Elvis lookalike and a 92-year-old called John also joined in the fun!
What do you think, do you play conkers with your friends? If so what are your top tips for the game? Let us know in the comments.
- Published5 October 2014
- Published24 September 2022
- Published8 October 2023
