Ooredoo Mas Race to be hosted in three islands this year

Local telecom provider, Ooredoo has opened the registration deadline for 'Ooredoo Masrace', the largest fishing competition in the Maldives and announced the winning prizes.

This event, which is held annually to celebrate the company's anniversary is set to take place in three islands this year; Kaafu atoll Himmafushi located in the north central region, Lhaviyani Naifaru located in the north region and Gaafu Dhaalu Thinadhoo, located in the south central province.

Those interested in participating are instructed to register their teams at the special section dedicated for the event on Ooredoo's official website.

The registration window has been extended until July 24. Teams with eight and twelve members, including the captain and officials are eligible to register for the event.

Ooredoo said that 16 teams will join the event from each region. If more than 16 teams register, a lottery will be be held to nominate the final 16 teams, said Ooredoo, adding that teams that are not selected will be refunded the cost of their expenses.

Managing Director and CEO of Ooredoo, Khalid Al-Hamadi said that the decision to host the event at three different islands this year was reached to facilitate additional opportunities for more people to immerse themselves in the joy and hype of the race. He emphasized that the event is received well each year and called for as many people to join the fun.

Addressing the Masrace held this year in collaboration with the Ministry of Fisheries, Marine Resources and Agriculture, a State Minister of the institution, Mohamed Muththalib said that their aim is to foster inclusivity and empower the people to preserve traditions of the community while increase awareness among the younger generations on the importance of protecting marine resources. The fish race is a great opportunity to achieve this target, said the State Minister, asserting that the event would display the unity and harmony of the people as well as the historic tradition of fishing.

The Ooredoo Masrace, set to take place next month has been distributed over three days. The event at Himmafushi will kick off on August 9 while the event at Thinadhoo will commence on August 16 and August 23, last day of the event will be hosted in Naifaru.

A prize pool of MVR 126,000 has been allocated for the competition with the champion offered a prize of MVR 25,000. The team to come in second are presented with a prize of MVR 10,000 while the third place winner is set to be gifted MVR 5,000. Meanwhile, the best fishermen to is offered MVR 1000 while the best fisherwoman is also proposed a prize of MVR 1000.

The Ooredoo Masrace held last year had taken place in four different locations, Male' City, Addu City, Fuvahmulah City, and Haa Dhaalu atoll Kulhuduffushi.