A CREATIVE designer from North London has been crowned the first ever winner of the National Dunking Championship.
Simon Girma won the first National Dunking Championship at Central London.
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The tea and biscuit lover, 35 years old, took part in the tournament organized by McVitie's, who challenges contestants to compete in a 'dunk off' – where they submerge their biscuit in a hot drink for as long as possible without it breaking.
When retrieving the cookie it should remain intact without breaking. If this fails, the participant loses the round.
The person with the most points after three dunk-offs wins and advances to the next round, under the watchful eye of cookie experts.
Each round features a different cookie, challenging participants' knowledge of each person's dunking abilities.
Read more about competitions
Simon was crowned the victor after a series of intense dunk-off rounds, including a sudden death tiebreaker.
And the cookie that produced the winning dunk? The Chocolate Hobnobloved by dunkers all over the world.
Commenting on his win, Simon said: “I am so proud to be the winner of the first ever McVitie's Dunking Championship.
“It was a great competition – all the other competitors were worthy opponents, but I knew my extensive dunk training regimen would work out well.
“It just shows that eating a biscuit with my tea has finally paid off.”
A panel of judges – led by Dr. Helen Pilcher, Cookie Maker's Chief Dunking Officer – oversaw the gameplay.
One of the standout moments of the championship was the Jaffa Cake round – a less common dunk choice, and one that confused players thanks to its unique spongy texture.
The Rich Tea round also proved dangerous as competitors tried to keep their nerve and avoid a dunking disaster.
From research conducted by Dr. Pilcher has found that a Hobnob can withstand 12.5 seconds of immersion, depending on the drink temperature.
While a Rich Tea's 'dunking danger zone' kicks in at 8.8 seconds, it is considered a high-risk cookie.
Dr. Pilcher said, “Being a judge for the National Dunking Championship felt like the perfect evolution of my role as Chief Dunking Officer.
“The participants were all great and had brilliant cookie knowledge.
“As a dunking enthusiast, it was extremely rewarding to see my dunking research put into practice and brought to life in such a unique way.”