Santa Apple, whose real name is Qi Xiaojie poses for photo with his friends. (Photo/ mingpao.com)

A man from Hong Kong was named the best Santa Claus in the world at an annual event in Sweden,reported mingpao.com.

Santa Apple, whose real name is Qi Xiaojie, beat four rivals to the prestigious title at the Santa Winter Games 2015 in Gällivare, 100km north of the Arctic Circle.

Xiaojie’s opponents included Santa Christine from Germany, Santa Jim from China, Santa Möre from Sweden, and last but not least, Santa Yamashita from Japan, who won the contest last year.

Qi Xiaojie, who is 21 years old, has been a Santa Clause for over three years. This time he won the first place in dancing and singing in Christmas songs competition and got extra points for his attractive packaging of parcels.

After winning on Saturday, Qi Xiaojie said this journey of being a Santa, sharing Hong Kong style gifts with local children and bringing them happiness and joy is very impressive to him. "Children's laughter is priceless gifts to Santa," he said.

Since 2003, the small mining town of Gallivare, Sweden, has drawn contestants from around the world to resolve an important matter: who is the best Santa in the world? Contestants were tested on Santa skills, including reindeer-lassoing, kick-sledding, porridge-eating, parcel-stacking, and a Christmas tree relay.

Santas from Hong Kong have been a force to be reckoned with in the contest ever since the 44-year-old magician Jimmy Chan swept to victory in 2009.

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