5 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT A CAMEL BEAUTY PAGE ANT SCANDAL

1 ARTIFICIALLY ENHANCED

A dozen camels have been banned from a beauty contest during the King Abdulaziz Camel Festival in Saudi Arabia after they were given Botox injections to enhance their lips, noses and jaws.

2 US$ 57 MILLION IN PRIZE MONEY

The month- long festival is an annual event held in Al Dhana, near the capital Riyadh, that attracts 30,000 camels competing in races, obedience competitions as well as the beauty pageant. At stake is US$ 57 million in prize money.

3 WANTED: SHAPELY HUMPS

The pageant itself is quite a spectacle. Owners must walk 20 of their best camels in front of the judges for inspection. The group is almost entirely female — save for one camel. Judges are looking for long, wide necks, broad cheeks, a shapely hump and drooping lips.

4 BOTOX EJECTIONS

So far, 12 camels have been disqualified for receiving Botox injections, a spokesman for the festival said on Wednesday. “They use Botox for the lips, the nose, the upper lips, the lower lips and even the jaw,” Ali alMazrouei, the son of a leading Emirati camel breeder, said. “It makes the head more inflated so when the camel comes, it’s like, ‘Oh, look at how big that head is,’” he said. “It has big lips, a big nose.”

5 SWEAR ON THE QUR’AN

Besides astute judges, microchipped camels and blood testing, the festival relies on another method to guard against cheating. “Before winners are announced, owners must swear on the Qur’an about a camel’s age and ownership. Whatever tactics employed to con judges, owners are reminded that while breeders may be judging the camels, God is judging them.