Here's a short story:

(CNN) -- An Alaskan beat out 300 hirsute competitors from around the globe to take the top honor at the 2009 World Beard and Moustache Championships on Saturday. 

Dan Sederowsky of Sweden shows off his moustache in Anchorage. 

David Traver may have had home-court advantage: He was a favorite of the crowd at the Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center in Anchorage, Alaska, in both the "freestyle" category, where just about anything goes, and the overall championship. 

His winning move? He wove his beard into a basket-like cone that resembled a snowshoe. 

There were 17 officially sanctioned categories in the competition: eight styles of moustache, four varieties of partial beard and goatee combinations, and five categories of full beards. 

The facial hair Olympics got its start in 1990 in Germany, and the German team typically dominates the event. Photo gallery: best beards and moustaches » 

This year's contest is the second time the World Beard and Moustache Championships have been held in the United States -- Carson City, Nevada, hosted the event in 2003. Video: Contestants strut their stuff in Anchorage » 

Since 1995, the contest has been held every two years. This year, competitors from 14 nations showed off their whiskers for the judges and a raucous crowd at the Anchorage venue. 

Karl-Heinz Hille of Germany came in second overall with a first-place finish in the Imperial Partial Beard category, and Jack Passion of San Francisco, California, placed third overall with his winning entry in the Natural Full Beard category. 

 (End of story)

Provide your best guess for the following question. Give ONLY the guess, no other words or explanation.

For example:

Guess: <most likely guess, as short as possible; not a complete sentence, just the guess!>

Here are a few examples of questions and answers:

Question: What year did the World Beard and Moustache Championships begin?
Guess: 1990

Question: Where did it start?
Guess: in Germany

Question: Where is it this year?
Guess: in Anchorage (Alaska)

Question: How many people were completing?
Guess: 301

Question: Who won?
Guess: David Traver

Question: Where was he from?
Guess: Alaska

Question: Did he have a beard or mustache?
Guess: a beard

Question: How many times has the competition been held in the US?
Guess: twice

Question: Where was it the first time?
Guess: Carson City, Nevada

Question: When was that?
Guess: in 2003

Now answer the following question in the same format.

Question: How many categories are judged?

17