Shifa Binte Zuraimi, silver medallist, Pach Ang, UAE Pencak Silat Advisory Board member and Zahrah Binte Zuraimi, gold medallist.

Much to the delight of the host nation, UAE athletes ended their campaign with 10 medals, including one gold, six silver, and three bronze medals at the inaugural edition of the Middle East Open Pencak Silat Championship 2023.

Marking their arrival in the Middle East, the 7th Asian Pencak Silat Championship and the first Middle East Open Pencak Silat Championship were held recently at Rashid Bin Hamdan Hall, Al Nasr Club in Dubai.

Almost 500 athletes representing 18 countries from across the world took part in both events.

Representing the colours of the UAE Pencak Silat national team, Zahrah Binte Zuraimi, a 15-year-old athlete produced a flawless performance to win gold in the sparring category of junior female Class A.

Hamza Akram Rachman, pree-teen athlete, secured a silver medal in Class G after a hard-fought battle against his opponent from Singapore in the final match.

Meanwhile, Singapore emerged as the overall champions in both the 7th Asian Pencak Silat Championship and the 1st Middle East Open Pencak Silat Championship.

Sheik Ferdous, who fought in Senior Class I (85kg), earned the Best Male Athlete award for his super performance at the competition.

Aura Aydria Putri (junior female below 39kg) received the Best Female Athlete award. Both were members of the Singapore Silat Team.

Punching above his weight, Singapore’s Mustafar Isa stunned Indonesia’s world artistic silat champion, Syarif Suhaimi, to grab his maiden Asian individual title.

Iqbal Rahman, the reigning champion in the artistic male single, and the artistic female team consisting of Iffah Batrisyia Noh, Amirah Sahrin, and Nur Ashikin Zulkifli also added gold medals to Singapore's tally.

Master Coach Roy Z. Kamsanee, the President of the UAE Pencak Silat Federation, expressed delight over the success of the event.

“It was an honour to host the first-ever Pencak Silat Championship of this caliber in the history of the UAE and the Middle East.

“The federation is now gearing up for the upcoming ASIAN Beach Pencak Silat Championship in Fujairah early next year and World Cup in Abu Dhabi, June 2024 and the 2nd Edition of Middle East Open Pencak Silat Championship in Sharjah later next year 2024,” he added.