Camel is crowned the most beautiful in Qatar after undergoing X-rays to prove it had not had cosmetic surgery

 A camel who had to undergo X-rays to prove it had not been given cosmetic surgery amid a Botox scandal has been crowned the most beautiful camel in Qatar.

Mangiah Ghufran was declared the winner of the £202,500 (one million riyal) top cash prize at the first Qatar Camel Festival in the city of Al-Shahaniya on Tuesday.A camel who had to undergo X-rays to prove it had not been given cosmetic surgery amid a Botox scandal has been crowned the most beautiful camel in Qatar.

Mangiah Ghufran was declared the winner of the £202,500 (one million riyal) top cash prize at the first Qatar Camel Festival in the city of Al-Shahaniya on Tuesday.His owner Fahed Farj Algufrani collected the cheque and told how it had taken 'years' to prepare the prize-winning beast for the beauty contest, which saw hundreds of enthusiastic spectators arrive to watch.

Previous festivals have been more local but Qatar has now allowed camels from across the region, drawing breeders from Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates with millions of pounds in prizes at stake at some events.

Mangiah Ghufran (pictured) was declared the winner of the £202,500 (one million riyal) top cash prize at the first Qatar Camel Festival in the city of Al-Shahaniya on Tuesday

His owner Fahed Farj Algufrani collected the cheque and told how it had taken 'years' to prepare the prize-winning beast for the beauty contest

Camels have to undergo X-rays and be examined by vets to prove they have not been given cosmetic surgery. Pictured: Camels with their handlers at the Qatar Camel Festival on March 8

But Mangiah's path to the top spot was not straightforward, as the even-toed ungulate had to undergo X-rays and be examined by vets to prove he had not been given cosmetic surgery.

In December, 43 camels were disqualified from a Saudi Arabia beauty contest after they were given Botox, face lifts and muscle-boosting hormones to make their lips droopier and their humps more shapely. The procedures can leave the camels with horrific injuries.

Hamad Jaber Al-Athba, the chief festival organiser, said work had been done to 'combat tampering', which includes the use of Botox and fillers, with the camels being put through X-rays and other monitoring.

'We had a professional veterinary staff and advanced equipment and we worked to combat tampering and limit the spread of cosmetic materials,' he said.

'Corruption was fought seriously at the Qatar Camel Festival.'

To pick the winners, the judges consider 'the size and beauty' of the head, the length of the neck and and the position of the camel's hump. 

'These are the most important points,' said Al-Athba.

Camels with pronounced lips are favoured by judges which has led to the use of Botox by cheaters. Pictured: Camels at the first Qatar Camel Festival on March 8

Cameleers guide their camels during the first Qatar Camel Festival in the city of Al-Shahaniya, around 25 Km northwest of the Qatari capital Doha, on March 8

A cameleer pets a calf during the first Qatar Camel Festival, which saw hundreds of spectators arrive to watch on Tuesday

For black camels, the size of its head can be a deal-breaker, but for white camels, the consistency of the colour is what counts.

Authorities in Qatar and its neighbours are seeking to give the traditional practice a higher profile as they compete with mega events such as football's World Cup and Formula One grands prix.

Al Athba said the festival had been a success, drawing Qatar's growing urban population as well as its desert-dwelling Bedouin.

In December, more than 40 camels were disqualified from the Abdulaziz Camel Festival after dozens of the animals were given Botox, face lifts and muscle-boosting hormones.

The beauties were booted in one of the biggest ever crackdowns at the festival, where breeders compete for some £49million in prize money. 

In December, over 40 camels were disqualified from the Abdulaziz Camel Festival after dozens of the animals were given Botox. Footage (pictured) went viral earlier this year showing a camel with ruptured lips after it was pumped full of Botox for another Saudi beauty contest

Cheaters used cosmetic procedures to dupe the judges, who hand out prizes based on the shape of the camels' heads, necks, humps, dress and postures. 

Authorities discovered dozens of breeders had stretched out the lips and noses of camels, used hormones to boost the beasts' muscles, injected camels' heads and lips with Botox to make them bigger, inflated body parts with rubber bands and used fillers to relax their faces.

'The club is keen to halt all acts of tampering and deception in the beautification of camels,' the Saudi Press Agency said at the time, adding organisers would 'impose strict penalties on manipulators.'

Not only is the treatment unfair on other breeders, but it risks leaving the camels with horrific injuries.

Footage went viral in August showing a camel with ruptured lips after it was pumped full of Botox for another Saudi beauty contest. 

Hundreds of thousands of Saudis attend the royal camel festival (pictured in 2018) which also features races, sales and other festivities typically showcasing thousands of dromedaries

Camels participating in the annual King Abdulaziz Camel Festival in Rumah, near the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh, in January 2018

Hundreds of thousands of Saudis attend the royal camel festival, which also features races, sales and other festivities typically showcasing thousands of dromedaries. 

On a rocky desert plateau, the government has erected a permanent venue to host the headline events such as races and a show competition. 

The pavilion features an auction where top camels can fetch millions of riyals. 

There are food stalls and souvenir shops, a petting zoo featuring the world's tallest and shortest camels and a museum with life-size sand sculptures of camels. 

There are also tents for tasting camel's milk and viewing camel-hair textiles, and a planetarium showing how Arabs rode camels through the desert guided by the stars.

This 'heritage village' has been expanded by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman who founded the official Camel Club by royal decree in 2017.

The extravaganza seeks to preserve the camel's role in the kingdom's Bedouin tradition and heritage, even as the oil-rich country ploughs ahead with modernising mega-projects.

Saudi enthusiasts can spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on the animals entered into the contests, with camel breeding being a multi-million-pound industry.