A public speaking competition organised by ICC One Toastmasters Club will be part of the Qatar National Day 2016 celebrations, it was announced.
The contest is being held in association with the Qatar National Day 2016 Associated Activities Organising Committee, said MI Farid, founder president, ICC One Toastmasters Club, during a press conference held on Sunday at the headquarters of Doha Bank, the event’s gold sponsor.
The contest, open to all residents of Qatar, is geared at promoting communication and leadership skills, according to chief co-ordinator Ravi Kumar, who noted that the contest finals will be held on December 16 at Radisson Blu Hotel.
“Our club has the distinction of organising this prestigious annual event for the 13th year in a row.
This year, it is at a higher level because we are celebrating the Qatar National Day,” Kumar said.
This year, the contest will feature the following categories: “Schools – Inspirational” (12 to 18 years), “Inspirational” (18 years and above), and “Humorous” (18 years and above). Kumar said two other categories were added to the students competition: “Schools – Inspirational” (12 to 18 years) and “Independent Schools” (12 to 18 years).
“Due to the large number of entries, we have pre-qualifying rounds in each category and the best six contestants go into the grand finale,” he said, adding that the finals will start at 2pm and will conclude by 9pm.
Kumar said all the contestants are given the judging criteria at the time of their registration.
In the pre-qualifying rounds, the same topic is given to the contestants in their category.
However, for the “humorous” and the finale contestants are free to choose their topic.
The guideline, Kumar stressed, is that contestants should not talk about sex, religion, or politics.
Schools co-ordinator Susmita Pattnaik said since the event is part of the national day celebrations, the topics chosen for the “inspirational” category are based on Qatar in association with the Qatar National Day 2016 Associated Activities Organising Committee.
Major Nasser Abdullah al-Suwaidi, vice president of the Qatar National Day Celebrations Security Committee, said the topics for the adult competition are “Qatar the Safest Country” and “Qatar’s Role in Humanitarian Relief,” while the student competition will delve on the the topics “Qatar’s Educational Progress” and “Sheikh Jassim bin Mohamed al-Thani, Founder of Qatar, a Visionary Leader.”
For more information and to participate in the event, visit www.icconetoastmasters.org.