Sri Lankan youth wins Toastmasters contest

A Sri Lankan Grade 10 student has won the Gavel Club Competition at the three-day Toastmasters Annual Conference 2013 (District 79) held in the Eastern Province recently.
Aaqil Imtiaz is a member of the Riyadh-based Serendib Toastmasters Club. The highlight of the last day was a presentation by Toastmaster International President John Lau, who was also present at the awards ceremony.
Imtiaz said he was thankful to all those who helped him win the contest.
Aspiring to study medicine, Imtiaz said he has developed communication and leadership skills at programs offered by the Serendib Toastmasters Club. “I am one of those beneficiaries,” he said proudly.
Xavier Arulandoo, charter president of the Serendib Toastmasters Club, who is currently in the United States, congratulated Imtiaz in a letter. “Imitiaz’s stunning victory at the district convention has added another feather to the cap of the Serendib Toastmasters Club.”
Arulandoo added that the youngster was the “first-ever gavelier to bring the district championship trophy home. We all know how competitive the contests are at the district level. One has to rise to a very high level of performance to impress the district audience. You have done it and made your parents, mentors, fellow gaveliers, Serendibians and the whole Sri Lankan community proud of your achievement.”
The Serendib Gavel Club was formed from the youth leadership program of the Serendib Toastmasters Club in 2005. The Serendib Gavel Club is among the few gavel clubs in Saudi Arabia to have leadership and communication training for young people.
The gaveliers harness their leadership and communication skills by completing meeting assignments, impromptu speeches, prepared speeches and leadership roles.