JEDDAH — The two-day workshops and contests, themed “Discover the Leader in You,” saw speakers captivating the audience with their oratory skills at the Grand Batterjee Medical College Auditorium. The highlight of the event were four enthralling contests, Humorous Speech, Table Topic, Evaluation, International Speech Contests and the Gavel Showcase. The event was planned with interactive educational workshop sessions conducted by a panel of seasoned Toastmasters on the sidelines of the competitions. Around 400 delegates, Saudis, expatriates, professionals and youth attended the event including toastmasters from Western, Central and Eastern Regions. Dignitaries present on the occasion were Abdullah I. Al Issa, Gen Admn. Corporate Affairs, Aramco, Bassem Al Jassm, PR Manager, BMC, Amr Banaja, VP for Communication & Mktg of Sedco, besides other distinguished guests. The event was organized under the leadership of District Governor 79 DTM Joey Villanueva together with TM Abdullah A. Al-Sharif, LGET, DTM Rashid Ali, LGM, Chairman TM Mamdouh Khawaji, Co Chair DTM Tess Villanueva, event organizer TM Mosleh Al Emrani and the team of chairmen who were applauded for their meticulous planning and efforts. TM Mamdouh, Chairman of the event said: “The event was very successful, attendees were enthusiastic, spirits were high and learning was at the peak.” There were 74 contestants from 14 divisions competing in 8 Arabic/English contests in addition to the 14 Gavel Contestants from all over the Kingdom. In English Contest, Abdullah Al Jurf was declared the champion of International Speech Contest and will be representing KSA (Dist 79) at Las Vegas (US), whereas Mohmmed Al Qahtani, and Osama Tawi won 2nd and 3rd places respectively. In Table Topics speech or Impromptu Speech contests, TM Helenka Deluca was adjudged as first place winner while TM Kashif Al Qureshi and TM Zainab Mulji won second and third places respectively. In Humorous speeches, TM Mohammed Al Qahtani created a laughter riot and bagged the first prize while TM Anas Al Hawsawi and Bassam Albahara were adjudged first and second runners up respectively. In Speech Evaluation contest, TM Kashef Al Qureshi won first place, whereas TM Vijay Kumar and TM Rizwan Ahmed Shaikh got second and third places respectively. The Gavel speakers enthralled the audience with their energy, fresh ideas and speaking skills. Winner of the Gavel Showcase was Ammar Ilyas while Akif Imtiaz and Nithin Balaji followed him in that order. In Arabic Contests: Humorous Speech winner was Abdul Rauf Darbari and the first runners up was Mohammed Al Barqawi. In Table Topic, Rada Alawad was declared champion, whereas Al Tayeb Al Shangeeti and Bara'a Al Hayek were declared first and second runners up respectively. In Evaluation Contest, Ismail Khan was declared champion, whereas Solaiman and Abdulaziz Al Showaykan secured second and third places. In the International Speech Contest, Abdul Rahman Al Ahmed bagged first place, whereas Saleh Bakheet AlJarallah bagged second spot in the contest. International Arabic presenter Dr. Sami Alansari, presented a seminar on “The Success”. Toastmasters who presented educational seminar were Waheed Lateef , Nashid Abdul Khaaliq , Ricardo S. Briones, Dr. Abdul Jaleel Padinjareveetil Abdu , Mazen Al-Sadat , Ashir Ameeruddin and Rajaa Mohammed. District Governor DTM Villanueva inspired the audience by his speech, adding that there will be leaders only when there are challenges. He announced that Saudi Arabia will be a President Distinguished District soon, the highest award given by the Toastmasters International. He thanked all for this achievement. District 79 council members also elected the office bearers and division governors for the session 2015-2016 during the event. The new district trio are TM Abdullah A Al Sharif, Dist. 79 Director, DTM Rashid Ali Mohammed Rawther, PQD, DTM James Edward Taruc, CGD. Newly elected District 79 Director TM Abdullah thanked all members for reposing trust in him. Batterjee Medical College was the host of the workshop. The program concluded with the cutting of a 9-layered cake. — SG
