Shearing teams from across the world are being encouraged to apply for the 2023 Golden Shears World Sheep Shearing & Wool Handling Championships.

Taking place at the 2023 Royal Highland Show (22-25 June 2023), the Golden Shears World Championship is the premier sheep shearing and wool handling competition, attracting shearers from over 30 countries across the globe. The 2023 competition is sponsored by Lister Shearing, British Wool, Ulster Wool and Elanco.

With almost 200,000 visitors flocking to the Royal Highland Show, next year’s Golden Shears stage will be viewed by a huge audience both at the Show and online.

The Golden Shears competition will take place over the four days, with competitors battling it out on a world stage – over 200,000 people from 82 countries tuned into the Royal Highland Show’s online viewing platform, RHS TV, in 2022.

Competitors from across the globe will be treated to a taste of Scottish hospitality with a gala dinner to open the competition, as well as having the opportunity to experience being part of the Royal Highland Show – an iconic event in the Scottish cultural calendar.

The Royal Highland Show is the flagship event of Scottish charity the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland (RHASS). The four-day event, first held in 1822, is the pinnacle of Scotland’s agricultural calendar. Every year over 1,000 trade exhibitors showcase their products, while over 2,000 livestock competitors enter into over 900 competitions (with over 6,500 animals).

Applications for the Golden Shears 2023 can be made on the Royal Highland Show website: royalhighlandshow.org

Applications will close in early January 2023.

Jim Warnock, Chairman of the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland (RHASS), commented:

“There is no better stage than the Royal Highland Show to celebrate the amazing skills of competitors at the Golden Shears. Scotland has a long and renowned heritage of sheep farming and wool handling, so it is fitting that the Show will host this prestigious competition.

“The Show offers a great experience for the whole family, with something for everyone to enjoy. The exciting addition of the Golden Shears only adds to the appeal of an already excellent day out, and offers a world stage on which competitors can display their skills.”

George Graham, Chairman of Golden Shears World Council, added:

“The 2023 Golden Shears World Shearing and Wool Handling Championships will be a spectacular event, showcasing the skills of competitors from up to forty countries. Set in Scotland at the Royal Highland Show, it will be a brilliant setting for next year’s competition.

“This is the Olympics of shearing and wool handling, with super athletes vying for the prestigious Golden Shears world teams and individual titles. Up to four and a half thousand sheep will lose their fleeces over the course of the event - a sight to behold!

“I would like to take this opportunity to convey my best wishes to Scotland as the host country and all the visiting countries, and I hope after a few very difficult years this will be a phenomenal success for everyone involved.”