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Beauty Pageant in Saudi Arabia
Published: October 31, 2008
The contestants scampered down the runway, bleating at their admirers. Poets sang their praises in verse, as the male-only audience appraised the competitorsâ beauty. But instead of the victor getting showered with roses and a tiara, it was off to the highest bidder for many finalists in the first Saudi beauty pageant for locally bred sheep. The goal of the competition on Thursday evening in a stretch of desert just north of Riyadh was to encourage Saudis to breed for quality. Some of those at the event said that Saudi sheep â a breed known as Nejdi sheep â have markedly improved over a decade because of the attention given to breeding them.
A version of this article appeared in print on November 1, 2008, on page A9 of the New York edition.

Published: October 31, 2008
The contestants scampered down the runway, bleating at their admirers. Poets sang their praises in verse, as the male-only audience appraised the competitorsâ beauty. But instead of the victor getting showered with roses and a tiara, it was off to the highest bidder for many finalists in the first Saudi beauty pageant for locally bred sheep. The goal of the competition on Thursday evening in a stretch of desert just north of Riyadh was to encourage Saudis to breed for quality. Some of those at the event said that Saudi sheep â a breed known as Nejdi sheep â have markedly improved over a decade because of the attention given to breeding them.
A version of this article appeared in print on November 1, 2008, on page A9 of the New York edition.