Omani rally drivers all set for the new challenge in Jordan
The Dead Sea stages and Jordan valley host the rally this year as usual, which consists of 12 stages over two days in Baptism, Panorama, Suwyma, Karamah, Tal Hilal and Wadi Nar, covering a distance of approximately 200 km as Special Stages.
The Jordan International Rally, which is considered one of the toughest rallies in the region and also one of the most enjoyable at the same time, will of course witness strong competition between the most prominent names, Nasser Al Attiyah and Rakan Al Rashed, the Omani Abdullah al Rawahi, and the Qatari Abdulaziz Al Kuwari, in addition to a group of Jordanian drivers.
In Merc 2 group the competition will be strong between Omanis Abdullah al Zubair and Zakariya al Amri for the lead in the Merc 2 (N category), as Al Amri still leads the category by 15 points over Al Zubair.
A quick review of this rally shows that competition will not be easy between Al Attiyah and Al Rawahi, as both have long experience in the Jordan International Rally, Al Attiyah is the most successful driver there, meanwhile Al Rawahi is building his ambitions to win the rally, given that he started his rally carrier in Jordan rallies and has won numerous titles there, both in the Jordan National Rallies and the International Rallies including the MERC championship in 2023.
Al Rawahi, who will be accompanied by Jordanian Atta Al Hamoud in the navigation seat, and on board a Skoda Fabia, explained that he will do his best in terms of effort and work inside the car to win this time and remove the bad luck that has plagued him in the past three rallies this year, despite many differences in the participating teams in terms of capabilities, technical teams and support.
He said, "First, I would like to thank the supporters and sponsors , the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth (MoCSY), the Oman Automobile Association, OQ Group, National Finance, Al Manar, WMS, Strike, Size, and Zamakan for standing behind us in this championship'. He added that as everyone knows, the Jordan Rally is difficult especially in the Dead Sea and Jordan valley, in the hot weather and varied terrain, the other competitors' cars are better and newer than mine, but will not stop me from working on the stages and focusing on the race and we will leave the results until the end." As for the competitor Zakariya al Amri and his navigator Mohammed al Mazroui, on board a Subaru Impreza (N14), he has classified the rally as one of the most rugged rallies in some places, but we are now focused on maintaining the lead in the category and we are working on that in this rally. I am ready with my colleague Mohammed and we look forward to continuing the lead in the category and presenting a strong race.
I would like to thank the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Youth, the Oman Automobile Association and Al Fayhaa Real Estate Development for their support of this championship.
Our other competitor, Abdullah al Zubair, and his well-known co-driver, Taha Soomar, are also participating in the rally in a Subaru Impreza. He is currently in second place in the Merc 2 category behind Zakariya al Amri and is aiming to reach the podium after his strong and distinguished performance in the Saudi Rally.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Observer
8 hours ago
- Observer
Al Alawi stars at 2025 aquatics in Singapore
MUSCAT: Omani international referee Abdulmonem bin Khamis al Alawi marked another significant milestone in his illustrious officiating career by successfully completing his duties at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships which concluded recently in Singapore. A prominent figure in the world of open water swimming, Al Alawi once again managed to demonstrate his elite expertise and professionalism on the global stage. As a member of the International Technical Committee for Open Water Swimming, Al Alawi officiated in several major events throughout the prestigious championship, which featured the world's top aquatic athletes, including Leon Marchand (France), Cameron McEvoy (Australia), Lani Pallister (Australia), Florian Wellbrock (Germany), Ichika Kajimoto (Japan), Noe Ponti (Switzerland), Hubert Kos (Hungary) and Nicolo Martinenghi (Italy). Oman's Al Alawi delivered an outstanding performance throughout the tournament and this solidified his reputation as one of the most respected officials in aquatic sports. His responsibilities reflected the confidence placed in him by the organisers and the World Aquatics. Speaking to Observer from Singapore, Abdulmonem said:' It is always an honour to represent your country in a high profile event like the World Championship. Attending the 2025 World Aquatics Championships in Singapore was a great milestone in my umpiring career. I am grateful to World Aquatics for their continued trust and confidence in my capabilities. A special thanks goes to the Oman Aquatics Association OAA as well for their unwavering support throughout the years.' ' I had key roles in officiating and managing various open water swimming events at the 2025 World Aquatics Championships. I have been assigned as Referee for the newly introduced 4x1500m Mixed Relay, which featured 23 teams and received widespread praise for its execution. Also, I led the judging panel for the Men's 10km race and served as the delegation head for the Women's 10km event, beside being the timekeeper for both the Men's and Women's 5km races. Furthermore, I supervised safety protocols for the 3km races in both categories,' he ended. Hailing from Sur, Oman, Al Alawi began his journey in swimming in 1986 and in 1995, became the first Omani referee to obtain an international licence in the sport. Over the decades, he has served as a pioneer for Omani representation in aquatic sports on the international level. Al Alawi officiated his third consecutive Olympic Games as he was appointed as the chief referee for the Men's and Women's 10km Marathon Swimming events at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, following previous appearances in Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020.
Observer
8 hours ago
- Observer
Oman Sail, QNB TO Partner FOR Optimist Asian & Oceanian Championship
MUSCAT: Oman Sail announced that it is partnering with QNB Oman to deliver the upcoming Optimist Asian & Oceanian Championship 2025, to be held at the Oman Sail Sailing School in Mussanah from 25 October to 1 November 2025. The agreement was signed by Dr Khamis bin Salim Al Jabri, CEO of Oman Sail, and Khalid bin Mohammed Al Barwani, CEO of QNB Oman, at a ceremony held recently at the Oman Sail headquarters. Through this agreement, QNB Oman joins Oman Sail as a Gold Partner to achieve excellence in the sport of sailing by enhancing Oman's presence at the global stage and enabling Omani sailors to compete at the highest levels. These efforts are part of establishing Oman as one of the leading countries in this sport. From signing ceremony Dr Khamis Al Jabri, CEO of Oman Sail, said, 'We are pleased to partner with QNB Oman to support the upcoming IODA Optimist Asian & Oceanian Championship. Like Oman Sail, our partners are committed to supporting and empowering the Omani Youth as part of the goals of Oman Vision 2040, and the event will be an important development opportunity for the next generation of Omani sailors as we prepare to welcome athletes, coaches, families and media from across Asia and Oceania to the Oman Sail Sailing School in Mussanah.' Khalid bin Mohammed Al Barwani, commented, 'QNB Oman is proud to partner with Oman Sail in supporting the IODA Optimist Asian & Oceanian Championship 2025. As the region's premier event for young sailors, this championship offers a unique platform for emerging talent to thrive and grow'. Through this partnership, QNB Oman reaffirms its commitment to empowering the next generation and providing them with the opportunities they need to reach their full potential on a global stage. The 2025 IODA Optimist Asian & Oceanian Championship, organised in collaboration with the Oman Marine Sports Committee and International Optimist Dinghy Association (IODA), will see over 100 sailors from more than 15 countries take part in a week of high-level competition. This will be the second time Mussanah has hosted the event following the successful staging of the event in 2019 with 141 participants from 21 nations taking part.
Observer
a day ago
- Observer
The quiet revolution as EVs charge ahead
I resisted purchasing an electric vehicle, or EV as they are known now, for years, for the most irrational of reasons: I couldn't stand the arrogance of Elon Musk and couldn't stand the thought that I may be contributing to his insane wealth and his wholly objectionable lifestyle. I don't think I've ever let someone, who I've never met and never will, get under my skin so much. And you must admit that his ubiquitous arrogance and supercilious entitlement, rank his face amongst the world's most 'punchable' But last week, I made the decision... and purchased my very first EV. It's not special, second-hand, of Chinese manufacture, it's an SUV with the higher driving position offering greater ease of entry and exit. Like all EVs, it's an automatic and has all the safer driving technology available in the marketplace today. I opted for an extended vehicle warranty and service contract with the dealership to minimise maintenance costs going forward and even though I'm still very much in the 'honeymoon' period, I'm enjoying being an EV driver. My purpose here is not to sell, or convince anyone to 'go electric', as such, but rather to ease you through some of the questions we all have as we consider 'yay' or 'nay', and in any case, I don't see the demand for petrol and diesel falling off a cliff overnight, as developing nations will be utilising both for many decades ahead, so don't worry Oman, the oil and gas industry will not disappear overnight and the Omani government has indicated that their forward planning towards an EV driven future is well in hand. Until recently, one of the greatest limiting factors facing EVs was vehicle cost. Of course, the earliest EVs were ridiculously expensive, two and three times the cost of conventional motors. However today, the difference is diminishing significantly, to around 30 per cent more and industry sources in the UK are expecting the growing market for EVs to result in a genuine levelling up between now and 2030. The latter date was to be the UK's final year in which petrol and diesel vehicles could be manufactured or sold new, though this date has been extended to 2035 to ensure sufficient charging infrastructure is provided. In fact, working towards the targeted 300,000 public charging points across the UK, by the July 1 this year only 82,002 all-access charge points had been commissioned. Balancing that, more than 1 million motorists have installed home fast-charger units which cost around RO 500 installed, or much slower trickle-charging three-pin chargers, affectionately termed 'granny-chargers', at around half that cost. Significantly, one major energy supplier is promoting discounts for electricity usage between 11:30 pm and 5:30 am, from 140 baisas per kWh, down to 35 baisas per kWh and with integrated app controls this is genuine economy. EV sales are rapidly accelerating across the major UK and European dealerships with more than one and a half million EVs now on the UK's roads, with half a million EVs sold during the 12 months to July this year alone. Change is afoot and I have graduated from an interested onlooker, to an enthusiastic advocate, a journey many more will take in the future. Motor industry CEO Carlos Ghosn says 'the time is not just right, but critical', and I guess he was speaking from marketing and environmental perspectives in the same breath, which could be seen as contradictive. However, what we should be thinking is that we were suspicious of and resisted, planes, trains and automobiles, computers, mobile phones, internet banking and the like, for decades... until we accepted their benefits outweighed the negatives. That's the thing about progress isn't it? Like time, it marches on, relentless, obstinate, unyielding in its determination and is rarely wrong, unlike we mortals. Will you join the revolution and get ahead of the EV curve? I did and it is so much fun!
