RIYADH — Prominent French falconer Sandra Boehm said that her debut participation in the International Falcon Breeders Auction (IFBA) is a distinctive and unique experience for her. "This gives me the opportunity to interact with international and Saudi falconers and amateurs of this heritage activity," she remarked. Sandra, who is the owner of the SB Falcons Farm, is participating for the first time in the IFBA, which is part of the annual King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival. The month-long event is being organized by the Saudi Falcons Club (SFC) at its headquarters in Malham, north of Riyadh. Sandra came to participate in the exhibition with her 12 falcons of unique breeds, while her participation in the auction will be with four falcons. She had participated with her other falcons and won cups in various championships in previous international falconry competitions. Leading breeders from 14 countries are taking part in IFBA, which started last Thursday and will run through until Sept. 5. The SFC recently released the timetable for this year's falconry festival to serve all lovers of the birds of prey within the Kingdom and around the world. The club will conclude its 2021 events with the 4th edition of the King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival, which is the largest event of its kind in the world and has set a world record in the Guinness Book of World Records twice in a row in terms of the number of participating falcons. The SFC said that the events meet the needs and desires of the falconers, and seek to achieve its goals aimed at the development and innovation of the falconry. The IFBA is the first of these events and was kicked off last Thursday in the presence of the leading breeders from 14 countries. The festival comes within the framework of the keenness of the wise leadership and its quest to preserve the cultural and civilizational heritage of the Kingdom and support it within its plans to achieve the Kingdom's Vision 2030 and strengthen the Kingdom's leadership in supporting cultural and civilizational activities. It is noteworthy that Kingdom has a rich historical heritage and tradition of falconry and the festival brings the ancient hobby back to its past glory. A total of 210 falcons competed in the third King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival held in Malham in December 2020. Finalists were selected to compete for the King Abdul Aziz Cup from the pool of winners of daily rounds. The SFC had allocated more than SR22.7 million in cash prizes for different competitions last year. This year's festival reflects the concern of the leadership to preserve and support the cultural heritage and legacy of the Kingdom as well as to promote the Kingdom's support for cultural activities and educate Saudis about their country's history, customs and traditions.
