BRONWEN Tango has a skill which is nothing to be sheepish about as it has made her the world number two in her field.

Customers at the Abergavenny hairdressers where she works may be surprised to learn of Bronwen's talent as she has to demonstrate her skill with wool, rather than tresses.

This summer she will be competing in the World Sheep Shearing and Wool Handling Championships in Toowomba, Queensland, Australia.

Bronwen was only just beaten into second place when the last world championships was held in Edinburgh.

The victor was Joanne Kumeroa, a New Zealander whose team-mates took another two of the four titles on offer at the Golden Shears competition.

"I have been competing since 1997. There are not that many people doing it here as it is a new thing in the northern hemisphere," said Bronwen, who is in her thirties, and has represented Wales on four previous occasions and is three-times champion at the Royal Welsh Show.

She explained that the contest involved grading and sorting the wool on a specially made slotted table. Each competitor starts with a perfect score and penalties are accumulated for faults and time.

She will be hoping to do even better in Australia than she did in Scotland, and snatch that top spot this June. "My burning ambition is to become a world champion," she said.

Farmer's daughter and shepherdess Bronwen hails from North Wales, but moved to the Abergavenny area about a year ago because she "fancied a change".

She now works in FX in Frogmore Street as a general helper - answering the phones, washing hair and making those all-important coffees.

Handling fleece is quite different from handling hair, agreed Bronwen. "It is a challenge, especially the merino wool, the finest in the world."