Ogne Ljuben CSWC Champion in North Macedonia

The Cigar Smoking World Championship qualifier in North Macedonia is one of the oldest, going back more than a decade. It’s an anticipated event every year, 2024 being no exception. Seasoned veterans and eager newcomers gathered to test their slow-smoking skills and the winner was one of the latter.

Last year Kliment Srbinoski took home the title in a competition that almost didn’t happen. After having been postponed for three months, the qualifier was finally held just four days before the grand finale. This year the organizers Marko Konstadinovski and Marko Trendafilov, and main judge Gabriel Stibel, made sure the margins were larger.

Srbinoski wasn’t able to defend his title, though. 1 hour 48 minutes and 55 seconds was about ten minutes short of his winning time in 2023, and it did give him a place on the podium, but only the bottom one.

“The fight for the third position was particularly intense, with Kliment Srbinoski, Aleksandar Trajkovski, and Marko Konstadinovski all vying for the final spot on the podium,” CSWC founder Marko Bilic says. “In the end, Kliment emerged victorious, edging out his competitors by just a few minutes, in a dramatic finish that underscored the close nature of the contest. The timeless art of slow smoking is a tradition that definitely continues to thrive in North Macedonia.”

Second place went to one of the veterans, Toni Trajkovski, who smoked for 1 hour 54 minutes and 10 seconds, but the new North Macedonian champion is newcomer Ogne Ljuben. He was actually the only one to make it past the two-hour limit, lasting for 2 hours 1 minute and 10 seconds.

“It was a slow and intense battle that kept everyone on the edge of their seats,” Bilic says. “In a thrilling turn of events, Ogne Ljuben managed to outlast the competition and claim the top spot.”

1. Ogne Ljuben 2:01:10
2. Toni Trajkovski 1:54:10
3. Kliment Srbinoski 1:48:55