Doha – QatarDebate

The competition continues between university teams to seize the title of the winner of the Asian Arabic Debating Championship which is organized by QatarDebate – a member of Qatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development – and hosted by the Sultanate of Oman in the capital Muscat from January 29 to February 2.

Under the patronage of His Excellency Bassel bin Ahmed Al Rawas, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Culture and Sports in the Sultanate of Oman, and OmanDebates. In recognition of their efforts, they were awarded the hosting of this important championship out confidence in the capabilities of the Omani youth and their great passion in spreading the art of debate. The number of debaters in the championship reached 165 debaters and more than 320 participants. All teams went through several rounds that showcased their debate skills in rebuttal and critical thinking.

Semi-finalists – Open Category

Three Qatari teams qualified for the semi-finals and are fiercely competing to win the title of the championship, and the rounds proved the extent of their ability to use their speech tools exceptionally, which therefore qualified them to acquire the highest points. The teams are Texas A&M University – Qatar, Georgetown University – Qatar, and Carnegie Mellon University – Qatar.

Princess Sumaya University from Jordan also qualified for the semi-finals to compete with Carnegie Mellon University Team.

Georgetown Qatar Team:

The Georgetown University team, consisting of Abdullah Hussein, Moza Al-Hajri, Hamza Al-Sioufi, and Yousef Salem, expressed their happiness with achieving these results, in addition to the importance of participating in this championship, as it is a rich experience that has great dimensions, including  networking with various likeminded individuals from around Asia. This helps debaters to develop their skills by learning from other debaters with different methods and approaches to debate.

The team praised the importance of the championship site in the Sultanate of Oman, and the hospitality and great hosting efforts, and these factors contributed to creating a nice environment and building bridges of friendship, cooperation, and exchange of experiences between debaters from different places. “It was a very pleasant atmosphere, the brothers in Oman impressed us with kindness and their warm welcome, and they did not spare any effort to provide all means of comfort for us either.”

Debater Asmahan Al-Kuwari from Carnegie Mellon University Team

Debater Asmahan Al-kuwari said: “It’s a wonderful and enriching experience, we enjoyed this exceptional Championship in Oman.” She adds: “The ambiance is very pleasant; everyone here is trying to represent their countries and their universities to the best of their capabilities.” “The universities participating from Qatar in the championship proved their exceptional talent and strength in debating and competing and representing the State of Qatar was a strong incentive for us to win the championship title”.

Championship Volunteers

25 Omani volunteers participated in the championship, supervised by QatarDebate trainer, Mr. Lutfi Baraka, who spoke about the training program for volunteers: ” We started with initial training via ZOOM, and a few days before the championship, there was a comprehensive introductory meeting for all volunteering teams, followed by a field visit to the venues.”

He added: “We held a meeting on the first day of the championship and it was confirmed that the distribution of the roles, every night there is a schedule of tasks for the next day.”

He praised the tremendous efforts of the volunteers and the extent of their responsibility   and speed in following through with instructions and carrying out tasks to the fullest, extending his sincere appreciation to these young volunteers.