Moroccan contestant Sara Belmamoun won first place in the women’s Quran recitation category in the 63rd International Quran Competition known as Malaysia International Al-Quran Recital and Memorization Assembly (MTHQA) in Kuala Lumpur last Tuesday, according to the International Quran News Agency (IQNA).
A total of 76 competitors from 52 nations participated in the two categories of Quran recital and memorizing. 24 men and 12 women competed in the evening reciting category, while 27 men and 13 women competed in the memorizing category.
Belmamoun’s talent, commitment, and Quran reciting skills impressed the judges, giving her a score of 93.05. Second place was awarded to Rouda Sufyan Noor of Indonesia, who received a 92.21, and third place to Sabaha Batu Salek of the Philippines, who received a 91.50.
Mohammed Qaim Nazar Sareimi of Malaysia won the men’s Quran reciting competition with a score of 94.96. Second place went to Ali Reza Bejni of Iran, who scored 93.30, and Mohammed Dhul-Hafiz Awang of Brunei received the third-place prize with a score of 90.38.
This was not the first time Belmamoun, a native of Taourirt, had excelled in Quran competitions; she won first place in the Mohammed VI Award for Quran memorization and recitation in the Eastern region in 2019.
Omar Ture of Guinea claimed first place in the men’s Quran memorization category with a score of 98.63, followed by Mamoun Ahmed of Yemen with 97.38 and Ali Atiya of Chad with 97.07.
Anfal Shaimaa Tabani of Algeria took top place in the women’s Quran memorizing category with a score of 96.32, followed by Nada Sinabu Nujum of Senegal with 95.25 and Khadija Sidi Mokhtar of Mauritania with 94.19.