Maldivian competitor places 4th at Saudi Quran competition

A Maldivian participant has secured fourth place in the King Abdulaziz International Quran Competition held in Saudi Arabia.

Fathimath Shaya Zahir of M. Asaasee achieved the result in the category for memorisation of the entire Holy Quran.

The competition brought together participants from 133 countries and is regarded as one of the largest international Quran recitation and memorisation competitions.

As part of the award for placing fourth, Shaya received a prize of 170,000 Saudi Riyals, equivalent to approximately MVR 700,000.

The results were announced during a ceremony held at Masjid al-Haram in Mecca on Tuesday night.

The event was attended by the Deputy Emir of Mecca, Prince Saud bin Mishal bin Abdulaziz, Grand Mosque Imam Dr Abdul Rahman Al-Sudais and Saudi Minister of Islamic Affairs Dr Abdullatif Al-Asheikh.

Shaya, who completed memorisation of the Holy Quran at the age of nine, was congratulated by Minister of Islamic Affairs Dr Mohamed Shaheem Ali Saeed following the announcement of the results.

Shaheem said the achievement reflected positively on both the participant and the Maldives.

According to the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Shaya has previously represented the Maldives in international Quran competitions and has secured high placements in a number of events.

The competition also marked a milestone in its history, with female participants being permitted to compete for the first time since the event was established 46 years ago.

In the 2022 edition of the competition, another Maldivian participant, Ahmed Nabeeh, reached the final stage of the event.

Shaya's fourth-place finish represents one of the Maldives' strongest performances in the competition to date.