Fat Bear Week kicks off this week. What to know about the annual competition

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (KTUU/Gray News) - Brackets have been revealed for the 12th annual Fat Bear Week, with the first matchups starting on Tuesday.Fat Bear Week is an annual online tournament that celebrates the health and survival of brown bears at Alaska’s Katmai National Park and Preserve as they prepare for winter hibernation.The brown bears in the competition live in Katmai National Park and put on pounds all summer in preparation for the harsh winter months of hibernation.This year, voters will choose between 10 adult brown bears, four family units and two sub-adult bears.“I think this year specifically, the first rounds are going to be really tough. They’re very evenly matched this year,” Katmai National Park ranger Sarah Bruce said. Bears 32 and 164, two of the field’s most dominant, popular bears, face off in the first round, a matchup Bruce said would normally happen much later in the competition.Voters will face daily matchups and decide which bear they think is the fattest, mo