ShareKUWAIT: The 10th year edition of GIG Battle Fitness Festival by Gulf Insurance Group, one of the leading insurance service providers in Middle East and North Africa region, was held last month in collaboration with Circuit+ and Suffix events.
The first day of the event at Kuwait Motor Town gathered around 2,300 athletes from over 35 countries. The inclusive battle combined Super Team Cup, athlete games, Saracen race, powerlifting combat and jiu-jitsu duel, where a diverse range of participants were welcomed — men, women and children.
Co-founder of Circuit+ Bader Al-Banna said: “It’s been 10 years now and that’s special for us. There’s a massive difference from the first year’s edition, as we kept improving year to year, and hopefully this is the best year we can bring out for people.” He noted that this year they tried to open as many competition categories as possible to attract more athletes, which made this edition of the event the biggest in terms of the venue space, participants and volunteer numbers.
One of Banna’s aspirations is to take the festival to the next level by not just limiting the event’s hosting rights to Kuwait, but have the opportunity to make it travel overseas and host it in different countries around the world.
Mohamed El-Tarkeet, a powerlifting champion, has joined the GIG Battle Fitness Festival four times in the past, where he stood first two times in a row. He explained to Kuwait Times that he considers the battle as a not-to-be-missed event. “It’s the first battle that I ever got introduced to in my life. It’s the only one that makes me feel close to my supporters, where I am in my own land among my own spectators,” he said. He added he’s so attached to the battle, that he feels it’s made specially for him to prove his success every year. “If you want to compete with me, you can win over me in any other battle, but here — this is my battle.”
Abrar Al-Fahad, member of Kuwait Weightlifting National Team and an Arab and West Asia champion, who is participating in GIG Battle Fitness Festival for the seventh time, spoke about the event’s significance. “It’s a great opportunity for a high-intensity competition with a great atmosphere. I encourage all women to join even if they feel that they don’t fit with the required standards. At the end, the experience is really worth the try.” She noted that what she loves the most about this battle is that every time she participates gives her a new chance to meet up with high-achieving athletes who motivate her to exceed her potential and break her records.
Volodymyr Molochko, a Ukrainian representative of the Circuit+ team in the Super Team Cup, participated for the second time in the battle. “It’s really nice to come back on the floor since 2019, and from now on I am planning to join every year,” he noted. Since there are few competitions in the region, this battle is not just a game for him, but the only chance for him to boost his self-confidence, evaluate his skills, spot his weak points, and most importantly, it’s a reminder for him to keep going and work on developing his performance.
The annual fitness festival, which was scheduled to run for two days, didn’t proceed due to the demise of the late Amir Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah and was postponed until further notice.
