JEDDAH, 16 July 2007 — Jeddah Governor Prince Mishaal ibn Majed yesterday honored winners of the Seabed Cleaning and Safe Diving Contest that took place on Thursday.
The first, second and third winners were Yasser Al-Jahdali, Mohannad Ba-Azeem and Mohamed Teshari respectively. A total of 100 divers of different ages participated in the event, with the youngest being 12. Each diver was given 45 minutes to go 60 feet under water to clean the seabed and ensure they follow correct sea-diving steps.
The divers were divided into four groups: The Jeddah Diver group led by Ahmed Al-Ghamdi, the Sailors Forum led by Hazim Al-Hazmi, the Kingdom Divers led by Khaled Al-Ghamdi, and the Al-Fahd Divers led by Saad Al-Muwalad.
“The idea of the contest was not merely to promote competition but to raise awareness among divers about safe diving,” said Mahmoud Al-Sulaimani, organizer of the event.
The three winners were noted for wearing their diving suits correctly and taking care of their colleagues while diving. “We were concerned that they keep balance under water. They also had to stay close to their colleagues,” he said.
The divers reported finding plastic containers, drink cans and car parts. “I don’t know who would throw car parts into the sea. Some of the things they found were too big to bring out. However, this year we found no magic spells,” said Al-Sulaimani.
Prince Mishaal ibn Majed also opened yesterday an exhibition featuring photographs taken during an underwater photograph competition that was held recently. Winning entries by Waleed Rafia, Hussam Kamal and Hani Al-Subahi were also on display. Each winner was given an underwater camera and a trophy.
The judging committee comprised a group of divers and photographers.
