German students win Ugly Dance World Cup

A group of four German high school students took first prize in the final of the Ugly Dance World Cup held in Hamburg this weekend.



The winners from the northwestern German town of Vechta competed against nine other teams from Germany, Luxembourg and Switzerland. "They convinced with epic ugliness, horrible appearance and their signature move - the Shy Dance," according to the competition's official website.

But the competition's organizers said that ugly dance was not necessarily bad. "It's so easy to dance nicely, but ugly dancing is an art. We like to call it "ugly aesthetics," they said.



The competition was set up in 2009 to create a platform for alternative dancing styles. The criteria for selection include "outstanding ugliness, creativity, singularity/unseen moves and fun factor."