Vancouver entry proves golden at
2008 World Pipe Band Championships
Members of the Simon Fraser University Pipe Band gathered for a victory photo in Glasgow, Scotland, on the weekend.
(Rob MacNeil/Simon Fraser University Pipe Band)
A Vancouver-area band won the top prize at the World Pipe Band Championships in Scotland for 2008.
The Simon Fraser University Pipe Band beat out more than 200 other bands from 16 countries to be selected overall best band at the international event — the fifth time they've taken the crown.
We were up against the world's best, and it's so good to come out on top again. It has been a long time," Pipe Major Terry Lee said in a statement.
The Burnaby, B.C.-based team last won the competition in 2001.
About 40,000 spectators packed Glasgow Green park in east Glasgow to watch the championships.
Organized each year by Culture and Sport Glasgow and the Royal Scottish Pipe Band Association, the championships are considered one of the country's most prestigious musical events.
The Canadians wrested the top spot from the 2006 and 2007 champions, The Field Marshal Montgomery Pipe Band from Northern Ireland, which took second place.
Scottish veterans House of Edgar, Shotts and Dykehead Pipe Band placed third.
With files from the Associated Press