Dubai, March 27, 2022: The Hamdan Bin Mohammed Heritage Center (HHC) has shortlisted 32 participants for the 23rd Fazza Championship for Youlah and 18th edition of Al Meydan Program organised by HHC in Dubai.
A total of 400 applicants from across the UAE and neighbouring countries have auditioned during the preliminaries that were held at Dubai Global Village. The shortlisted 32 participants will be further cut down to 12 finalists who will compete in the various heritage sports, including horse riding, camel race, Saktoun rifle shooting, swimming and Youlah, as well as Arabic poetry recitation.
The over-all winner will lift the Fazza Gold Cup and will be hailed as the Meydan Grand Knight.
Rashid Al Khasouni, HHC Director of Championships, who oversaw the preliminaries, was impressed with the high turnout of applicants. He said the 32 shortlisted participants will have ample time to prepare for the competition that will kick-off in November later this year.
Nathalie Awadissian, chairman of the Organising Committee of the Fazza Championship for Youlah and HHC Director of Radio Stations Department, Media and Corporate Communication, added: “Holding the preliminaries is a big help for participants to prepare them for the competitions. The Fazza Championship for Youlah is a comprehensive competition where participants undergo gruelling tasks to win the title.”
Bahraini participant
Abdullah Waleed, 15, from Bahrain, said he came specifically to Dubai to participate in the competition. He said: “I have been following Youlah for a long time and it was my dream to participate in the competition and display my skills.”
*Young Yuweels*
Another young Yuweel (participant) is 14-year old Fahid Al-Ali who is a second-time participant. He said he will do his best to reach the final round, adding he has been training a lot to make his dream come true.
Suhail Al Shamsi, 15, for his part, shared: “My friends encouraged me to participate, and I think I have a good chance to win because I’m confident with my skills in horse riding, camel racing and swimming.”
Mohammed Salem Al-Amri, 20, from Al Ain is also confident to lift the Fazza Gold Cup. He said he will do his best and train hard to win the cup. The same spirit was shown by second-time participant Muhammad Saeed Al-Muhairi, who promised that he will reach the final round this time.
