MANAMA, 18 August 2006 — The first Arab to compete in the World Toastmasters Championship finals is scheduled to depart to Washington DC today to secure a seat in the qualification round.
Bahraini Mohammed Ali Redha, 36, will compete against 6 others in one of two rounds that will determine who will occupy one of the two international seats in the finals set for Aug. 26.
Seven others contestants will compete to occupy the second international seat, where a total of ten finalists will contend.
Eight out of the ten seats are reserved for North Americans because of the large share of Toastmasters clubs in that region while the 13 others will compete for the two remaining seats in the finals.
Redha, who has worked for the past 13 years as a safety coordinator with Aluminium Bahrain (Alba), qualified for the finals when he clinched the Middle East championship title in Dubai a few months ago.
“I am excited to be the first Arab to compete in the finals qualification round, but I am looking to achieve more than that,” Redha, who is a member of the Alba Toastmasters Club, told Arab News. “Participating in the finals requires intensive training and the people I will be competing against will each be representing their own country and each will be determined to win, I expect the competition to be very fierce.”
Redha, who is a father to three boys aged 1, 3, and 10, said that the support and constant motivation he had received from Alba executives, local officials and his colleagues have been very encouraging. “In fact, it has motivated me to work even harder to try and bring this honor back home with me,” he said.
Alba Toastmasters Club Public Relations Vice President, Mohammed Mahmood — who is also the Alba metal production general manager — said he was excited that a member of their team was on his way to the finals.
“Once again, an Alba champion will help bring Bahrain international praise and recognition,” said Mahmood. “It is the first time any Arab — let alone a Bahraini - has made it to the World Championship finals to compete against the world’s very best Toastmasters.”
The finals are set to take place at the Washington Convention Center on Aug. 26 where the 75th Annual Toastmasters International Convention is also set to take place Aug. 23-26.
At Toastmasters clubs members learn by speaking to groups and working with others in a supportive environment.
A typical Toastmasters club is made up of 20 to 30 people who meet once a week for about an hour and in each meeting members are given the opportunity to practice conducting meetings and receive constructive evaluation where every speaker is assigned an evaluator who points out speech strengths and offers suggestions for improvement.
