A German sporting thick white sideburns arching from his ears to his chin has been crowned 2003 World Beard and Mustache Champion in Nevada, according to a Local 6 News report.

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German Wins World Beard Championship

The World Beard and Mustache Championships are held every two years but this is the first time they've ever been held outside Europe.

"I feel as happy as a pig in mud," said Berliner Karl Heinz Hille, (pictured, right) who beat 130 contestants for the coveted title.

Men sporting anything from classic Euro moustaches to "free-style" shapes were up before the judges in 17 categories.

This year's participants traveled from Austria, England, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Sweden, Norway and Switzerland to take part.

Thousands of people lined the streets of Carson City to watch the parade and they couldn't believe their eyes when the Beard and Mustache crowd appeared.

"The Europeans really take their stuff serious," says Gary Johnson of Team USA's Whisker Club. "I mean, they're big time competitors and they're really into facial hair. I mean, you can't get any more serious than them."

A tremendous amount of primping and preening goes on behind closed doors before the competition takes place and as Ted Sedman, President of the Handlebar Club in London explained, some of the more exotic looks are just too hard to maintain in everyday life.

Karl Heinz Hille who was representing the Berliner Bartclub of Berlin, Germany was a definite favorite with the crowd and when he took the trophy for best Imperial mustache they could barely contain themselves.

Of the 17 World Champion trophies up for grabs, Germany won seven categories, Italy, Switzerland, Hong Kong and Austria took one category each, England came out on top in two and the United States won four.

The next World Championship Beard and Mustache Championship will take place in Berlin, Germany in 2005, and London, England will play host in 2007.