December 6, 2021/ Socotra Online
Reporting and Photography: Ibrahim Youssef -Aref Abdo
The Sultan Ali bin Isa bin Afrar Heritage Festival organized a camel race on the sidelines of the closing events of the festival, which was organized with the support of the Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation and in coordination with the Culture Office in the governorate.
The contest was over a distance of one kilometer and was divided into 4 runs, with the participation of 64 camels who came to the festival from different villages of the island to participate.
In the first round, the contestants Issa Abdullah Salem and Hassan Ali Amer won the first place (repeated), Fikri Salem Saleh in the second place, and Muhammad Salem Hammoud in the third place. In the third round, Ali Mubarak Al-Nubi won the first, Issa Ahmed Abdullah and Abdullah Salem Saleh won the third place, and in the fourth round, Ahmed Khamis won the first place, Muhammad Muslim Al-Fan got the second, and Ahmed Fintas Saeed got the third.
Mohammed Thani, Member of the jury for the race, said that the race lasted for two days and witnessed strong competition between the contestants, with short distances between them when reaching the final line. He praised the efforts of the festival management and the Khalifa Foundation for their support and keenness to organize the camel race as part of the heritage events that delighted the visitors and the people of the island.
Salem Saleh Al-Hamid, Member of the Organizing and Jury Committee, indicated that the competition witnessed four rounds, in which 64 contestants participated from various regions in Socotra.
Ammar Al-Hamid, the winner of the first place in the second half, expressed his happiness with his victory in the second half, considering his participation in the race as the greatest victory because of the importance of this in restoring the customs and traditions of ancestors.
The organizing committee of the race honored the participants who won the first three places in each round with the financial prizes allocated for the race, provided by the Khalifa Foundation.
The race witnessed a large public presence over the two days of the race, which reflected the great love of the people of Socotra for such wonderful heritage events.
