After having received an overwhelming 58 creative mascot design submissions, the 2016 WC Mascot Selection committee it narrowed down to the top four designs.
The mascot design competition for the 2016 IFMA World Championships scheduled for 18-28 May in Jonkopping,Sweden was launched a month an a half ago and entries have been spilling in from all corners of the globe!
Making the top four cut were designs from Czech Republic, Peru, Thailand and Brazil.
Contestants were asked to submit their mascot design based on one of Sweden’s endangered species, the Wolverine. Wolverines are Sweden’s least known and most secretive large predator, and one of its most misunderstood. With such a confusing name, many people assume it must be some kind of wolf, perhaps a smaller cousin to that icon of the wilderness, the grey wolf.
Actually, the wolverine is the largest of the mustelids (a group of animals which includes the badger and the otter), and can weigh up to 30kg. In summer the wolverine feeds mainly on birds and mammals, but in winter will eat reindeer killed either by itself or other predators. Protected in Sweden since 1969, the wolverine is still rare in Sweden, with around 450 wild individuals, and it is still one of Sweden’s most threatened species.
After narrowing it down to the top four, the selection committee reconvened to vote on the winner and after a tough deliberation the winning design was selected and it was Panuwat Sangiam’s design that took the win. A big congratulations to Panuwat Sangiam, from Phuket Rajabhat University!!
Congratulations also to the remaining three top designs which made the decision truly difficult!
