The World Snow Sculpting Championship (WSSC) is returning to Lowell Park in Stillwater for its second annual winter competition January 18–22—and it will attract competitors and visitors from across the globe. The weekend-long festival invites visitors to experience the best of Minnesota’s winter with a lineup of locally sponsored events, an all-things-winter indoor market and warming house, and the world’s best snow sculptures, which will be created before their very eyes.
Presented by Greater Stillwater Chamber of Commerce, this year’s competition includes 12 international teams racing to create what they hope to be named as the world’s best snow sculpture of the year. With teams hailing from Finland, Canada, Argentina, Ecuador, Mexico, Germany, Turkey, and the United States (including competitors from our very own Land of 10,000 Lakes), the competition will pull in design styles and techniques from the world over.
Alongside the snowy activities outdoors, the festival’s new indoor market and warming house offers a local shopping experience from 10 vendors, plus a space for visitors to warm up in when the winter weather gets a little too cold. In the mood to do a little extra Stillwater exploring? Event buttons on sale for $5 through January 22 offer WSSC visitors the opportunity to get special deals at more than 19 local Stillwater shops, restaurants, and breweries.
But snow and shopping aren’t the only enticing factors at WSSC. The weekend includes a six-event lineup promising to keep excitement growing throughout the four-days of winter festivities.
Starting with the Event Kick-Off on January 18, this free event includes the official countdown to the beginning of the competition. With a few words from KSTP’s leading meteorologist, Dave Dahl, and the national anthem sung by St. Croix Valley Opera’s Obed Floan, this event invites visitors to countdown the beginning of the competition, while a Bloody Mary bar waits across the street at Water Street Inn starting at 9 a.m.
Later into the afternoon of January 18, an Olympic-style fanfare celebration will give guests a chance to get a behind-the-scenes look into competition. A ticket to the opening ceremony event includes getting an opportunity to learn more in-depth about the world-class sculptors, chatting with the teams and the event’s sponsors, and getting a described overview of the competition. Alongside a three-course plated meal, a welcome speech from Stillwater’s Mayor, Ted Kozlowski, and a performance from Curio Dance and school, this event invites Midwestern culture and charm into the weekend of festivities.
To conclude the competition, a closing ceremony on January 21 awards $4,000, $3,000, and $2,000 to the first, second, and third place winners, along with a People’s Choice Award given to the sculpture voted best by the competition’s visitors on January 22 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.
And the weekend doesn’t end there. The festival will be hosting the World’s Coolest Block Party and MinneSnowta Nice Day on January 22, with the weekend-long Wild Rice Cook Off awards crowned at the end of the MinneSnowta Nice Day celebration. With live music from a family-friendly DJ at the World’s Coolest Block Party, a pancake breakfast and visits from some of Minnesota’s most beloved characters like Paul Bunyon and Goldy Gopher at MinneSnowta Nice Day celebration, and the opportunity to vote for the best wild rice recipe from one of the thirteen local Stillwater competing restaurants, the World Snow Sculpture Competition fun goes all weekend long. greaterstillwaterchamber.org