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September 30, 2020

Big and beautiful: Jumbo '747' wins annual Fat Bear Week competition

WATCH: Grizzly bear feasts at Denver Zoo

The presidential election is still weeks away, but one big election just wrapped up.

That's right, the winner of Fat Bear Week 2020 has finally been crowned.

And just like 2020, the competition couldn't be bigger and the stakes couldn't have been higher.

BIG NEWS!!! The votes are in for @KatmaiNPS’s annual #FatBearWeek tournament and 747 is the champion! One of the park’s biggest bears, 747 is estimated to weigh in at over 1,400 lbs! Congrats! Is there cake? pic.twitter.com/73JYbNSMEu

— National Park Service (@NatlParkService) October 7, 2020

Bear "747," named after the iconic jumbo jet, swept away the competition to win the coveted spot of fattest bear.

The annual tournament allows America to vote on which brown bear at Katmai National Park and Preserve in Wild Salmon, Alaska, is the fattest before they head into hibernation.

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"You’ve crowned the Earl of Avoirdupois, bear 747, the 2020 Fat Bear Week Champion," Katmai National Park announced on its social media accounts.

Match 11: Lardaceous Leviathan Levels Chunky Challenger

The votes are in! You’ve crowned the Earl of Avoirdupois, bear 747, the 2020 Fat Bear Week Champion. No longer the runner-up, 747 fulfills the fate of the fat and fabulous as he heads off to hibernation.#FatBearWeek pic.twitter.com/NpyguJiZb4

— Katmai National Park (@KatmaiNPS) October 7, 2020

Fat Bear Week, a collaboration among Katmai National Park and Preserve in Alaska, Explore.org and Katmai Conservancy, pits the fattest bears in the park against each other, with your vote determining the winner.

It's like March Madness but with fat bears -- and the week even comes with its own bracket.

Voting ran from Sept. 30 through Oct. 6.

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In the end, the final match was between 747 and Chunk.

Fat Bear Week was started as a fun and creative way to educate people about the importance of wild bears and hibernation.

Welcome to #FatBearWeek 2020! Today's first matchup is between the dominant doge, bear 856, and big-bootied bear 151 Walker. In this arena, can 151 Walker flaunt his fatness or will 856 once again prove that overbearing obesity wins the day?

Vote Here: https://t.co/NvXCYNigTJ pic.twitter.com/MSIfDws6Q5

— Katmai National Park (@KatmaiNPS) September 30, 2020

"These brown bears' power of packing on the pounds gets them through the winter and able to live to compete another year," the National Parks Service said in a press release.

All hail 747, The Earl of Avoirdupois.

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#FatBearWeek starts tomorrow, and 747's body is ready.

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