Winter Carnival ice carving winners announced

After a weekend of creativity under strict rules, the Saint Paul Winter Carnival ice carving competition winners were announced Sunday.

The multi-block competition took place from Thursday to Saturday. Each team had 48 hours and 20 blocks of ice to complete their creation.

“Frigid Legends Treasure,” a frozen dragon, took first place, carved by John Njoes and John Matis, of Minneapolis, and John Cooper, of St. Paul.

In the single block professional competition, carvers had from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Sunday to turn a block of ice into a frozen wonder. Trevor Pearson, of Minneapolis, took home first place for his “Fox.”

The single block artisan competitors had an extra hour and finished at 3 p.m. Sunday. Chad Peterson, of Pasa Robles, Calif., won with “S on Spheres.”

Participants were judged on their sculptures’ consistency with a proposed initial sketch, attention to detail, originality, technical difficulty and how the ice was utilized.

The Saint Paul Winter Carnival continues through Feb. 6.

Other winners:

Multi-Block Competition

  • Second place — “The Circus”
    • Tom Klug, Hastings
    • John Klug, Rosemount
    • Ian Buckley, Hugo
    • Austin Greenleaf, Las Vegas, Nevada
  • Third Place — “First Perspective”
    • Deneena Hughes, Eden Prairie
    • Paul Hughes, Eden Prairie
    • Sally Wightkin, Maple Grove
    • Joe Wightkin, Maple Grove

Single Block Professional

  • Second Place — “Fish”
    • Tom Schiller, Hastings
  • Third Place — “Encanto”
    • John Njoes, Minneapolis

Single Block Artisan

  • Second Place — “Piece of Cake”
    • Jim Zupfer, Woodbury
    • Nate Stromberg, St. Paul
  • Third Place — “2 Clowns”
    • Kevin Petroske, Blaine
    • Nancy Petroske, Blaine