On 6 July, the world’s fastest-moving molluscs slid along to a small village in Norfolk, England, to compete in the annual Snail Racing World Championships. Race day conditions were perfect for the competitors: damp and not too warm. “Snail master” Nicholas Dickinson started the race by shouting, “Ready, steady, SLOW!” and off the snails went. To win, they had to race from the centre of a circular 33 centimetre course to the finish line at the edge, and the speediest snail won a “very juicy bunch of Romaine lettuce”. The championships started in the village of Congham in the 1960s, and have been held there ever since. Out of around 200 entrants, the 2024 champion was Jeff, “trained” by Simon Lilley, with a time of four minutes and five seconds.…