6 days ago
Oman Kite Festival shares the beauty of Al Ashkhara
MUSCAT: The penultimate leg of the Oman Downwinder, part of the Oman Kite Festival 2025 set off from the Pink Lagoon headed for Al Ashkharah, demonstrating the untapped natural beauty in the Al Sharqiyah South Governorate. Organised by OMRAN Group in partnership with Oman Sail, Visit Oman, and Oman Adventure Centre, the Oman Kite Festival reflects the commitment of all stakeholders to develop sports tourism and capitalise on Oman's unique coastline as a world-class tourism experience.
Ayman bin Abdullah al Ghafri won the leg, ahead of Al Mukhtar bin Abdulkarim al Mujaini in second and Ahmed Mohammed from Egypt in third. These results puts Al Mukhtar bin Abdulkarim al Mujaini on top, with Ayman bin Abdullah al Ghafri second and Ahmed Mohammed in third.
With just one more leg remaining, from Ras Al Jinz to Ras Al Hadd on July 24, the Oman Kite Festival 2025 has successfully showcased the potential of the Omani coastline to attract domestic and international tourists as well as reinforced the Sultanate of Oman's position on the international map of adventure and marine sports events.
A slalom competition will also take place on July 24 at Ras Al Hadd, showing the complexity of kite surfing and the visual appeal from a spectator perspective with 90 top-ranked international Kite Festival athletes all taking part. This will be followed by the closing ceremony at Sur Waterfront where the prizes will be presented. In attendance will be the Governor of Al Sharqiyah South, Dr Yahya bin Badr al Maawali, Dr Hashil bin Obaid al Mahrouqi, CEO of OMRAN Group, Dr Khamis bin Salim al Jabri, CEO of Oman Sail, Senior management from both organisations, and representatives from event sponsors and partners.
Abdullah al Farsi, Operation Manager, said, 'The Oman Kite Festival is a key part of OMRAN Group's ongoing efforts to promote adventure tourism and harness Oman's natural assets — especially in coastal destinations like Bar Al Hikman, Ras Al Hadd, Masirah Island, and Al Ashkharah. To be able to do this with such a high calibre of athlete and of competition highlights the potential for Oman's distinctive coastal destinations to become exceptional platforms for tourism experiences.
'The geographic and thematic expansion of this year's festival activities, building on the success of last year's Oman Downwinder, reflects the Group's vision to develop high - quality events that drive tourism movement.'
