17-year-old Nuriya Bibarsova, resident of village Srednyaya Elyuzan (Urta Alazan) in Russia, took part in VIII International Qur’an Reading Contest which took place between May 11 and 16 in Amman, capital of Jordan. The contest was organized by the Ministry of Wakuf and Religious Affairs of the country under the auspice of Queen Rania Al Abdullah.

The event brought together contenders from 31 countries who competed in three nominations: knowledge of ten juz, knowledge of twenty juz and knowledge of entire Qur'an. The contest took part in Islamic Cultural Center of King Abdullah I Mosque. The jury was comprised of the delegates from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Morocco.
According to Nuriya Bibarsova, on the fifth day of their stay in Jordan the organizers arranged a trip to the Dead Sea, Cave of Ashab al-Kahf (Cave Dwellers) and the Mosque of Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah, one of the companions of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

The event's solemn closing ceremony was attended by honorary guests and renowned people of Jordan, including Minister of Wakuf and Religious Affairs Dr Muhammad Nuh al-Qudah, who led the awards ceremony. Five best and brightest were chosen in each category. The nomination “Knowledge of the whole Qur’an and its exegesis” was won by a participant from Yemen, second place was taken by Bahrain, third by UAE, fourth by Algeria and fifth by Palestine.

The second nomination, “Knowledge of 20 juz”, was won by a Bangladeshi. Second place went to Saudi Arabia, third to Morocco, fourth to Egypt, and fifth to Indonesia. In the last nomination, “Knowledge of 10 juz”, Great Britain placed first, Jordan second, Brunei third, Lebanon fourth and Russia fifth.
The organizers handed out presents, diplomas and money awards to all the participants.
Nuriya Bibarsova, who represented Russia, said she was grateful to Allah for this great opportunity to take part in such a remarkable contest and a chance to meet Muslimas from different countries. She also expressed her gratitude to Russian Muftis Council and its chairman mufti sheikh Ravil Gaynutdin for giving her credence and for building effective relations with other countries, which lets many Muslims from Russia participate in such events, thus completing one of the commandments of Allah: “And in aspiring for this [the paradise], the competitors should compete” (Sura Al-Mutaffifin, 26).

CMR press service