Watch the World’s Largest Water Lilies Compete in This Must-See Spectacle

The most wholesome sporting event of the year doesn’t have human participants: Instead, it’s all about water lilies. And while it hasn’t made it to the Olympics (yet), it’s just as exciting.

The Water Lily Weigh Off is an annual worldwide face-off between public gardens and zoos to see whose enormous Victoria water lily can hold the most weight before it sinks. It started back in 2023, making this its third year. Across social media, viewers have been captivated by which of the 40-plus global contenders will take home the grand prize.

Why Victoria Water Lilies?

If you haven’t seen a Victoria water lily for yourself, you may be a bit puzzled about this whole concept. However, their leaves can span over 10 feet—making them bigger than your typical pool float.

These lilies aren’t delicate, either. The underside of each leaf is covered in a grid of massive veins filled with air, which gives the lily its signature buoyancy, allowing it to float on the water’s surface. They also support the leaf under immense weight—which is where the Water Lily Weigh Off competition comes in.

How the Water Lily Weigh Off Works

Started by the Denver Botanic Gardens, which continues to run the challenge every year, participants upload videos of their prize water lilies to social media to enter. They must submit a video showing them placing weight (in any form—which we’ll get to in a moment) onto a water lily until it sinks.

Some participants use dumbbells to weigh down their water lilies, while others use bricks, sandbags, or even cheesecakes. Yes, you read that right—the Brooklyn Botanic Garden placed 30 pounds of boxed cheesecakes on their Victoria water lily, reassuring viewers afterwards that no desserts were harmed during the challenge.

The Official Winner of the 2025 Water Lily Weigh Off

The challenge ran from August 18 to 24, and on the 28th, a winner was determined: Bok Tower Gardens in Florida. Their champion water lily had clearly been doing some serious strength training, because it supported an impressive 183 pounds. The 2024 champion, Missouri Botanical Garden, was right behind in second place this year with a water lily that held 182 pounds.

There were more than 40 confirmed participants this year, with botanical gardens and zoos joining from all over the world—including public gardens from England, Spain, Scotland, Germany, Canada, Australia, and South Africa. 

While you’ll find plenty of inspiring feats on Denver Botanic Gardens’ participants page, you’ll also see plenty of weight measurements that are a little less standard. 

The Mathias Botanical Garden in Los Angeles entered a water lily that held a single gummy bear before sinking. The Morton Arboretum in Illinois tapped out after 12 toy frogs. The California Conservatory of Flowers decided to hold a tea party with its prize water lily, holding a record-breaking two ceramic frogs. But the most impressive by far is the Stellenbosch University Botanical Garden in South Africa, whose lily pad held Jack from the Titanic. (As they said, “If only Jack had one of these in the North Atlantic, am I right?”)

We’re looking forward to seeing how many pounds next year’s champion will lift—all we’re missing now is Ina Garten’s Olympic-style coverage of the event.