Qatar: Grand finale of ICC One Communication Championship-2014 held

Doha: Yet another eventful page is turned in the history of ICC ONE Toastmasters Club. The Grand Finale of ICC One Communication Championship 2014 was conducted on November 14, at the Giwana Ballroom, Radisson Blu Hotel.

ICC ONE Toastmasters has been conducting this event continuously for the past 11 years as a token of its social commitment towards promoting education and public speaking to the residents of Qatar. The 2014 Championships comprised of three segments – the Juniors speech contest featuring contestants from Schools and Gavel clubs and the Humorous and International speech contests open to all residents of Qatar of age 18yrs and above. All three categories attracted many enthusiastic applicants. Eliminations were conducted in the months of October and November and 6 finalists per category were shortlisted for the Grand Finale.

The first segment, the Schools / Gavel Clubs Speech contest was anchored by Nevine Kamel, a seasoned HR professional, a freelance Trainer, Coach & Public speaker. The mesmerizing event showcased confident teenagers with vibrant oratory skills. It was indeed a treat to watch the high schoolers oozing with energy and speaking on topics that were diverse and truly inspirational. The 1st Place winner, Sara Salah El Amin from Shantinekaten School, spoke on the topic ‘Live in the Moment’ and exhorted the audience to stop waiting for tomorrows and live life now. The 2nd place winner, Shwetha Grace Eapen representing ICC Gavels, spoke on - ‘In the company of Lions’. She urged the audience to seek the company of great minds because we become like the people we hang around with. The third place winner was Vikram Kumaresan representing DPS-MIS. In his speech titled ‘The war’, he stressed on the values of a being an optimist in life. The audience popular poll was won by Ms Shwetha Grace Eapen.

The second segment, the Humorous Speech contest had the Contest Chair in Issam Alameh, an IT Professional who kept the audience regaled with witty comments. The Speakers had the audience pealing with laughter at the funny stories and comical body language weaved around hilarious topics. The 1st Place Winner was Surendra Kumar who narrated amusing family stories on the theme ‘I Love you’. The second prize Winner was Deepak Shivankar, who under the topic ‘My Mysterious Mentors’ comically presented the ordeal of training under mentors. The 3rd place winner, Jithu John Koshy, jestfully portrayed the stress of daily routines under the topic ‘The Last Day’. This segment was truly the most entertaining round for the audience. The audience popular poll also was won by Surendra Kumar.

The much awaited final segment, the International Speech contest, was the crème de la crème of the evening and was anchored by Euphracia Kalii, an Aircraft Maintenance Specialist in the Technical department of Qatar Airways. The 6 eloquent finalists vied with each other to educate the audience with their unique perspectives. The 1st Place winner, Diego Denzil Fernandes, with the speech title ‘10 minutes in my busy life’ spoke powerfully on how fatigue can be a killer and how it is important to find 10 mins. to pull over and rest before driving on while exhausted. The second place winner was Nerieza Manosca S Dilmao. In her speech titled ‘The wave that was’, she movingly depicted the unbreakable human spirit in the face of calamity. The third prize winner, Omar Mohammed Fayyad, spoke on ‘The power of influence is in our hands’. He persuaded the audience to be a spark of influence in the world as one little influence starts off a chain which touches many hearts. The audience popular vote was also won by Mr Diego Denzil Fernandes.
The gala evening culminated with a spectacular Award ceremony wherein the Chief Guest was Capt. Ravi Kumar, Defence Attache at the Indian Embassy and Guests of Honour were Hassan Chougule, Businessman, Educationist and Social Activist and James John, Deputy General Manager of Gulf Times. Besides Trophies, Winners carried away Cash Awards and household gifts. Winners in both Humorous and International categories were awarded Qr.5,000/- each while the Junior Champion collected Qr.2,000/-.

The success of the event can be credited to the tireless effort of the organizers and the diligent performance of anchors and role players. The hunt for the champion speakers of Qatar for the year 2014 was thus successfully closed. ICC ONE TOASTMASTERS club commits itself to continuing this challenging quest for years to come.