A German shorthaired pointer from Temecula named CJ won “Best in Show” at the 140th Westminster Kennel Club dog show in New York on Tuesday, besting more than 2,700 contestants over the two-day competition.
Westminster, which is the second-longest continuously running sporting event in the United States behind the Kentucky Derby, drew entries from nearly 200 breeds and varieties and more than a dozen countries this year.
“He was born for this,” said owner Valerie Nunes-Atkinson of Temecula, after CJ, short for California Journey, won best in the sporting group earlier in the night. “There’s something special about him.”
CJ, who pranced across an expansive show floor at Madison Square Garden, will receive a trophy and embark on a media tour as the show’s champion. A Borzoi, named Lucy, was runner-up.
As part of the Westminster competition, judges select the best of each breed and group, divided into seven categories — hound, toy, non-sporting, herding, sporting, working and terrier.
On Monday, the first night of events, Lucy the Borzoi won in the hound group; a flat-faced and pudgy bulldog named Annabelle won in the non-sporting group; Rumor, a spirited German shepherd won in the herding group; and a silky-haired shih tzu named Panda won in the toy group.
CJ won the sporting group; a Skye terrier named Charlie, won in the terrier group; and a white and fluffy Samoyed, named Bogey, won in the working group on Tuesday evening.
“It’s the best show in the world, the one everybody wants to win and the one where everybody cries if they lose,” said Charlie’s handler, Larry Cornelius, before the final round.
Last year, a friendly female beagle named Miss P won Best in Show, becoming the second of her breed ever to win the title.
— Reuters