Dubai: Iran and Saudi Arabia took the top spots in the Quran and call to prayer recital competition held in the Kingdom on Friday.
Iranian contestant Younes Shahmoradi won first place in the Quran recital part of the competition and was awarded a prize of $800,000 (SR3 million), followed by Abdulaziz Al Faqih from Saudi Arabia in second place, receiving a prize of $500,000 (SR1.87 million).
In the call to prayer category, Mohammad Al Sharif from Saudi Arabia emerged as the winner and was awarded a prize of $500,000, while Indonesian contestant Diaa Al Din bin Nizar Al Din secured second place and won one million riyals.
The competition, known as “Aatr Al Kalam” or “Perfume of Words” in English, was launched by Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Entertainment in 2019 to celebrate exceptional vocal talents in Quranic recitation and the call to prayer.
The programme received six certificates from the Guinness Book of Records during the finale, recognising it as the largest Quranic competition in terms of participating countries, the largest competitions in the call to prayer, as well as the largest prizes in Quranic and call to prayer competitions.
Saudi Arabia’s Chairman of the General Authority for Entertainment, Turki Al Sheikh, presented the winners with their awards. The competition had a total prize pool of $3 million.
