Team USA-Vermont won Gold in the 26th annual International Snow Sculpture Championships in Breckenridge, Colorado, with “Rhonda and Her Recycling Robo-Octopus,” a piece that depicted 14-year-old science whiz Rhonda riding inside her invention—the Robo-Octopus—which helps clean the ocean floor. Judges appreciated the piece’s achievements both technically and conceptually, and the appeal for audiences on multiple levels.

Along with 15 other teams, Vermont sculptors worked with only hand tools for 65 hours across five days to create a temporary outdoor art gallery. Teams competing included: Canada (Yukon), Estonia, Finland, France, Germany (Agrawal), Germany (Theil), Great Britain, Mexico, Mongolia (Batmunkh), Mongolia (Bayanmunkh), Switzerland, USA (Breckenridge), USA (Loveland), USA (Vermont), USA (Wisconsin), and Ukraine.

Below you will find a gallery of the winners along with the People’s and Artist’s Choice winners. For more information visit Breckenridge’s official tourism website, as well as their official Snow Sculpture Championship Facebook page.

 

 

 

 

Team Switzerland won Silver with “Converse.” The sculpture depicted two structures, almost identical, yet converse.

 

 

Team USA-Loveland won Bronze with “Bolting from Extinction,” a piece rooted in the idea that nature does not know extinction because it only knows transformation

 

 

Team USA-Wisconsin won Artists’ Choice with “Dia de los Muertos,” which represented an altar seen during the Mexican holiday.