Defying Disability.. A Saudi woman Beats Falconers at King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival

Ashraf AboArafe

Riyadh – The falconer, Hadeel Salem Al-Mutairi, defied her disability through her hobby and passion for the world of falcons. She was able to participate in Melwah competition within King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival (KAFF) 2021, to achieve an advanced position that grants her a financial prize.
Yesterday, Al-Mutairi participated with two falcons in the Jeer Shaheen Jirnas race, Saudi owners. With her falcon “Ana Aqder”, she achieved the eighth place. The falcon crossed the distance of the path in a time of 17.944 seconds and competed with more than 60 falconers who participated in the competition run.
The falconer also participated with another falcon in the same round, named (Bint Al-Saudia), which was not lucky to qualify, but it constituted a strong start for the falconer who is participating for the first time in KAFF.
Hadeel Al-Mutairi achieved an advanced position in the competition, which is the highest position achieved by a female Saudi falconer in the festival since its first edition in 2018.
It is noteworthy that KAFF allocated financial prizes to winners of about 25 million riyals, for the Melwah and Mazayen competitions, which are held at the Saudi Falcons Club Grounds, in Mulham, north of Riyadh, and will continue its activities until December 16.

Falconers Participating in King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival Train Falcons Up to 3 Months
Riyadh –
Falconers participating in the King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival (KAFF) 2021 depend on their experience and knowledge in choosing falcons. They train their falcons to participate in races in diverse ways. Each falconer trains its falcon in his own method according to some falconers and it could take from one to three months.
Zaid Abdullah Jarallah Al-Suwaidan, a falconer the owner of a 5-years-old Jeer Pure Jirnas falcon who is participating for the first time in KAFF’s race, mentions that he prepared his bird by training him to hunt for 3 months. He explained that he strives the falcon to gain fitness, and that the lucky falconer is the one who can train his falcon for a long time, in different times and weather conditions.
On the other hand, the falconer Sattam Mansour Al-Mutairi explained that if the falcon is in good health, it can be trained in only one month. He added that the training must be done gradually and in stages, so that the falcon does not get tired and get sick, and the training of a falcon may reach two months.
Al-Mutairi pointed out that each falconer has his own way of training and preparing his falcon, and that each category of falcons has a different method of training, and all of this depends on the weather condition. If the weather is hot, the falcon cannot be trained in an appropriate way.
However, the falconer Majid Mujeeb Al-Dossary, who participated in the Pure Gyr Farkh category, stated that falcons’ owners have their own preparations for the falcon’s flaying and pursuing paths, and that he personally mostly uses the Phantom and other tools. He explains that a period of one and a half to two months is the time needed for a falcon to be ready to participate in races.
It is noteworthy that KAFF is an international festival organized by the Saudi Falcon Club, which witnesses the participation of elite falconers in the Kingdom and the GCC countries, in Malham, and it is opened for all falcons to participate in Melwah and Mazayn.