It occurred to me that, with the pandemic keeping everyone apart, it had been a while since I’d raised the subject of any of the many odd events that the world has to offer. The Owl has covered competitive egg tossing, pumpkin boating, costumed distance running, surfing Santas and more. Tonight, we’re going to England to experience one of the more specialized competitions… the Window Cleaning World Cup.
As far as international challenges go, the WCWC is fairly new, having been created in 2019. It debuted at the Cleaning Show in London on March 20, and brought together competitors from around the world.
Those who recall prior Owls will be unsurprised to learn of the existence of the International Window Cleaning Association. There is no activity which cannot spawn a governing organization, particularly when sport or professions are involved. The World Cup’s requirements are designed within the standards set forth by IWCA officials.
The competitors are timed by their ability to properly clean three standard sized office windows, which are mounted roughly chest-high near the athlete. They are expected to wash all of the windows properly in the fastest time possible, with marks off for every streak which remains.
The first place winner was Jeremiah Hickey of the United States with a time of 17.02 seconds, while Jimmy Strom of Sweden and Darren Ansbro of England came in second and third places, respectively.
Lest the newness of the event create the appearance that people have only recently begun to view window cleaning as a competition, it is worth noting that Hickey beat Terry “Turbo” Burrows from England, who set the world record of just over 9 seconds more than a decade ago.
And for all of those who would complain that these cleaners are not properly cleaning along the corners… take it up with the IWCA, they’re the ones who wrote the rules.
While the Cleaning Show is scheduled to return in June of 2021, the fate of the WCWC 2021 is uncertain. We may be forced, because of COVID-19, to wait until 2022 to find out who is the best window cleaner in the world. Until then, you’re just going to have to make do with the Super Bowl.
Question of the night: If you could get free tickets to any one competition or sporting event, what would it be?
