At the risk of covering ground that's been well trodden in the past,it's not overly clear just what the yardstick is when judging a picture that's been entered in the competition - it could be composition,exposure,picture quality (however you define that),or any number of technical issues.
Then again there are pictures that just stand out because of what they convey.Whilst not liking the photo myself,I have to admit that picture 1 has that quality.Yes,technically it isn't very good,and you could run up quite a long list of what's wrong with it,but I think Techniquest summed it up very well indeed - it's got the wow factor.
Oh for the chance to get a shot like that. Oh,and just by the way,no,I didn't vote for it,but that's another story.