First women’s martial arts tournament concludes in Jeddah

The Brazilian jiu-jitsu championship is a form of wrestling consisting of one round that lasts for five minutes, whereas the amateur kickboxing championship consists of two rounds of light contact, each lasting for two minutes. (Photo/Supplied)

• In the jiu-jitsu lightweight division, Jude Al-Fahmi was the winner, Ma’wiya Zahed was second and Hanan Saber third

JEDDAH: The Legendary Heroes gym club in Jeddah organized the first women’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu and kickboxing tournament, with the participation of around 40 contestants.
This tournament is considered the first-of-its-kind women’s sports event in the Kingdom. It was held under the auspices of the General Sports Authority. The tournament aimed to stress the importance of women’s power in society and further promote martial arts values.
The tournament was characterized by the contestants’ enthusiasm and fierce competition. In the jiu-jitsu lightweight division, Jude Al-Fahmi was the winner, Ma’wiya Zahed was second and Hanan Saber third. In the kickboxing lightweight division, Alzhra’ Al-Qorshi was first and Mourouj Al-Amoudi second. In the jiu-jitsu middleweight division, Hounouf Sanari was the winner and Lyann Hadrami runner-up, and in the kickboxing middleweight division, Hadeel Ashour won and Maha Halwani was second. Mourouj Al-Amoudi won the jiu-jitsu heavyweight division, with Lynn Fira second, Arwi Tambousi third and Shahd Al-Shareef fourth. Sarah Nas won the kickboxing heavyweight division and Rana Hakim was runner-up. In the jiu-jitsu open weight division, Shahd Al-Shareef was first and Hanan Saber second.
Captain Mohammed Abbas, the founder of Legendary Heroes, said the championship competitions had a large audience and a broad attendance of women of various age groups. It also witnessed various sports such as audience arm-wrestling and martial arts shows such as karate, Taekwondo and Tai Chi.
Jumana Yusuf, executive director of the tournament’s organizing committee, said she was happy with the success of the tournament, which aims to spread martial arts culture and discipline, reflecting positively on promoting the country to be in the ranks of developed countries.
She added that throughout history, this culture has been a key factor in the revival and advancement of people and the defense of their homelands.
“The second goal is to lead by example in organizing and managing women’s martial arts tournaments so that all women’s clubs can organize such activities professionally and smoothly.
“The Legendary Heroes gym club’s management in Jeddah organized training and refereeing sessions for its working group and contestants in these two sports. The management also gave away a free booklet that includes the translated two sports’ arbitration laws. Captain Marouj Al-Ghamdi, kickboxing and jiu-jitsu trainer, was a fundamental factor in spreading these sports and organizing this tournament as one of the judges and as a contestant,” she added.
The tournament’s judges were international Saudi contestant Captain Farah Al-Zahrani, the holder of a blue belt practicing in Jordan, and international judges Amina Hatem and Rou’a Zareh.