Leonardo Rizzo and Antonio Salmone from Sanrizz ended their L'Oréal Colour Trophy journey on an incredible high as they were crowned overall winners of the Southern Region, also coming in at third place in the overall competition. The talented team produced a chic 1940's inspired style that looks set to be a big hit with clients in their Guildford based salon.

Over 1,200 of the world's top hairdressers applauded as Leonardo and Antonio collected their award from the evening's ultra-fashionable presenter Fearne Cotton and industry luminary Charles Worthington. Stylist Leonardo and colourist Antonio were overwhelmed with the result, speaking moments after they came off stage they said; "We weren't expecting this at all, this is the second year we have won our region and we are so proud to have done it again."

Talent, drive and determination saw them through three tough rounds of the competition which started way back in March. Over 1,200 salon teams entered, 350 Regional Finalists were short-listed; with 45 Regional Finalists selected to compete at the Grand Final.

Sanrizz was one of three teams representing the Southern region on the day of the Grand Final. Under the brief 'hair inspired by fashion' they spent 2.5 hours colouring, coiffing and styling their model to perfection before a host of hairdressing legends were brought in to judge their work.

Dressed in an effortlessly beautiful black dress, their model proved to a hit with the judges. Leonardo and Antonio explain the thinking behind their striking image: "We wanted to present a beautiful outline that had a highly polished, clean finish. Using a rich, coppery chestnut colour we applied a subtle shadow inside the style which catches the eye when the model moves. The strong shape of the haircut works with the model's natural beauty and makes reference to the styles of the 1940's."

TV favourites Richard Ward, Charles Worthington and Trevor Sorbie were among the panel of industry peers deliberating over who should be the winner. They agreed that the salon team of Leonardo and Antonio met the brief set by L'Oréal Professionnel.

Unaware of their fate, competitors and their supporters made their way to the spectacular Grand Final event at Earls Court 2 where they watched their model stride out onto the catwalk. Throughout the evening there were stunning shows by Zoe Irwin for Headmasters and Tim Hartley in addition to an exclusive preview of fashion designer Aimee McWilliams' Autumn/Winter 07 collection.

After a nail-biting wait it was time to reveal the winning team. Upon hearing their name read out there was disbelief then delight. Sanrizz were officially announced winners of the Southern Region and the cheers from their supporters could be heard across the city! But this was not to be the end of their incredible journey, moments later they were also announced as third place winners in the overall competition.

In what proved to be a phenomenal night of success for the salon group, Sanrizz swept the board with Maria O'Keefe from their London salon picking up the overall winner title in the L'Oréal Colour Trophy and Leanne Brown from the Knightsbridge salon achieving runner-up status in L'Oréal Men's Image award.

"Winning the L'Oréal Colour Trophy at this level is quite simply the best thing that can happen to a hairdresser," said Leonardo. "In terms of personal profile, it puts you on a higher level within the industry and opens so many doors to new opportunities. Clients love that we are doing so well in competitions as it makes them feel like they are visiting true experts."