“Bear Force One” has landed another title in the annual Fat Bear Week competition.
The 1,400-pound, 20-year-old bear, known as 747, won his second title in the annual event, repeating his 2020 triumph, Smithsonian reported. He defeated bear No. 901, a 6-year-old female, by a voting margin of 68,105-56,876, according to Explore.org.
The contest is a weeklong celebration of bears gorging themselves on salmon on the Brooks River at Katmai National Park & Preserve in Alaska in preparation for winter hibernation, KTUU-TV reported.
A total of 1,027,655 legitimate votes were cast online during the competition.
Organizers at the preserve announced vote tampering during Sunday’s semifinals, CNN reported.
“A Fat Bear Week scandal for the ages,” Explore.org tweeted on Sunday. “Someone stuffed the ballot box!”
THIS 747 IS CLEARED FOR LANDING. Introducing your 2022 👑 Fat Bear Week champion. pic.twitter.com/gVCzhYeX5n
— explore.org (@exploreorg) October 12, 2022
National park officials said it was easy to determine which votes were fraudulent, and they were discarded, ABC News reported.
“Like bears stuff their face with fish, our ballot box, too, has been stuffed,” the national park said.
Adult male bears typically weigh between 700 and 900 pounds in midsummer and often weigh more than 1,200 pounds by the late summer and fall, according to Explore.org.
🐻 A Fat Bear Week scandal for the ages 🐻
— explore.org (@exploreorg) October 10, 2022
Someone stuffed the ballot box! The correct total after our review is:
747: 37,940
435: 30,430
That makes 747 today's winner.
Fake votes are discarded, and all the past days' votes have been reviewed.
We'll see you tomorrow! pic.twitter.com/HQcyZOWfeG
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