MIR contest

MIR, formerly Mr. International Rubber, is a multi-day convention and contest celebrating the rubber, fetish, and kink communities.^[1] Established in 1997, MIR occurs annually in Chicagoland during the autumn, drawing participants and attendees from all over the world.^[2] Events include workshops, socials, dances, market, and the contest.

MIR
Rubber Pride Flag
Status	Active
Genre	Rubber, Fetish, Kink
Frequency	Annually
Location(s)	Chicagoland
Country	United States
Inaugurated	1997 (1997)
Most recent	October 17-20, 2024
Organised by	MIR Contest, NPO
Website	mirubber.com

History

MIR started in 1997 hosted at the Boystown bar, Cell Block, and has been run every year since.^[3] In 2009 MIR contest moved to the Center on Halsted to account for larger crowds.^[4] In 2020 MIR 24 was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[5] MIR 27 in 2023 moved to a new location in Skokie, Illinois.^[6]

At MIR 27 in 2023, organizers announced that the event would allow contestants of all genders to compete;^[6] the contest winner may chose whichever honorific best represents them as MIR titleholder: Mr. International Rubber, Ms. International Rubber, Mx. International Rubber, or MIR International Rubber Ambassador.^[7] To promote inclusion, organizers also changed the official name of the contest from "Mr. International Rubber" to gender-neutral "MIR."^[7]

The Leather Archives & Museum holds many of MIR's records.^[8]

Winners

Below is a table of MIR contest winners.^[9] Winner's Country as used in the table refers to the winner's country of residence at the time they won the competition.

Year	Class	Winner	Preliminary Title / Sponsor	Winner's Country	Ref.
2024	MIR 28	Rush		United States	[10]
2023	MIR 27	AJ Huff	M. San Francisco Rubber	United States	[11]
2022	MIR 26	Pusckatt Pumera ONYX	Mr. Florida Rubber	United States	[11][12]
2021	MIR 25	ChicagoRubber		United States	[11]
2020	MIR 24	Contest was virtual and no MIR titleholder was selected.			[11]
2019	MIR 23	Adalberto Rubadam	Mr. Rubber Netherlands	Netherlands	[11]
2018	MIR 22	Guillaume Dupuis		Canada	[11]
2017	MIR 21	Michal Neighbour		Poland	[11]
2016	MIR 20	Preston "Wexx" So	Mr. New England Rubber	United States	[11]
2015	MIR 19	Jeffrey "Gummibärchen" Basile	Mr. Midwest Rubber	United States	[11]
2014	MIR 18	Max Samauth	Mr. Rubber Netherlands	Netherlands	[11]
2013	MIR 17	Andy "CosmicRoo" Coatham	Mr. Rubber Toronto	Canada	[11]
2012	MIR 16	Rubber Jason		United States	[13]
2011	MIR 15	Sly Hands	Mr. Rubber UK	United Kingdom	[11]
2010	MIR 14	G-Man	Mr. Southeast Rubber	United States	[11]
2009	MIR 13	Fenn	Mr. Rubber Toronto	Canada	[11]
2008	MIR 12	Stephane Donaldson	Mr. Rubber Montreal	Canada	[11]
2007	MIR 11	BJ Turgeon	Mr. Rubber Montreal	Canada	[11]
2006	MIR 10	Maurizo Iacone	Mr. Rubber Italy	Italy	[11]
2005	MIR 9	Michael Schneider		Germany	[11]
2004	MIR 8	Frank Bug	Mr. Rubclub 2004	Germany	[11]
2003	MIR 7	Chris Vincent		United States	[11]
2002	MIR 6	William "Rubberwilli" Schendel		United States	[11]
2001	MIR 5	Yannick Kerjose		France	[11]
2000	MIR 4	Chad McLaughlin		United States	[11]
1999	MIR 3	Tom Kelley		United States	[11]
1998	MIR 2	Thomas Smith		United States	[11]
1997	MIR 1	Christoph Lehner		United States	[11]