Saudi Gazette report JEDDAH – Abdulilah Bawazir was born without arms, but was inspired by the story of the Australian youth Nicholas James Vujicic, who was interviewed by the American news TV channel CBN. Vujicic, who does not have arms or legs, had talked about his successes. Bawazir decided to compete in a marathon and won first place in the championship of the Sports Federation for Saudi Universities held in February at Umm Al-Qura University, Al-Hayat reported. Bawazir was born in 1992 in Riyadh without arms. He dealt with this fate in a realistic way. According to him, he was able to overcome the shock of being disabled because his parents stood by him and this contributed greatly to his self-confidence. “People look at me wherever I go. Looks of pity sadden me. I'm not in need of sympathy because I have been self-reliant for a long time,” he said. He was admitted in a special school for disabled children belonging to the Ministry of Social Affairs. In the intermediate stage, he was transferred to a government school in Al-Fakhiriah district of Riyadh. It was the first time he mixed with normal children in school. Speaking about this stage, Bawazir said: “It was one of the most important stages in my life. I didn't feel any discrimination. I was finally rid of the looks of pity pursuing me in public places.” Bawazir, who is the eldest of six brothers, enrolled in a religious institute affiliated to Imam Muhammad Bin Saud University so as to benefit from the strong Arabic language curricula. The institute teaches intensive Arabic language curricula in the intermediate and secondary stages. He then attended lectures in Imam Muhammad Bin Saud University in 2010 and specialized in social sciences. He chose this specialization because it has the most important principles for serving people with special needs. Bawazir said he is angered by the actions of part-time university students and even those walking on the streets because they disrespect the rights of the disabled and compete against them for parking lots allocated for the disabled. There is a lack of regulations and assisting tools for helping people with special needs. Bawazir thanked Allah that he is not physically challenged; otherwise he would have suffered a lot. He feels for the suffering of the physically challenged.
