Some of the participants in the ongoing Otr Elkalam (Scent of Speech) TV show were judges in various international competitions, which reflects the contest's status and the high value of its prizes. Although they judged contestants in Qur'an recitation and call to prayer competitions in several countries before, these participants moved from being assessors to competing in Otr Elkalam hoping to win one of the first places in the largest championship of its kind in the world. The competition is distinguished by the high value of its prizes and the participation of teachers and qaris (reciters) from some of the well-known Qur'an memorization schools as contestants. These special contestants include, among others, Egyptian Sheikh Mohammed Al-Awadi, who was an assessor in many Qur'an competitions and a Hifz (memorization) teacher for about 400 students. Syrian contestant Mutasim Billah Al-Asali has also been a judge in many competitions around the world. Otr Elkalam, the international Holy Qur'an and call to prayer competition organized by the General Entertainment Authority (GEA), achieved exceptional success within days of the launch of its qualifying rounds, which are broadcast daily on Saudi TV's Otr Elkalam show at 5 p.m., Riyadh time, as well as the Shahid platform. In addition to the distinctive recitations, the competition presents exciting rivalry among viewers who watched the past episodes featuring 12 contestants in the two branches of the competition — Qur'an recitation and call to prayer. A large number of viewers reacted to the stories of the contestants with details of their lives before the preliminary rounds led them to the Saudi capital, Riyadh, to take part in a competition that combines, for the first time, Qur'an recitation and call to prayer. Otr Elkalam is the largest competition of its kind in terms of prize value, amounting to SR12 million ($3.2 million), the number of competitors in the first stage — more than 40,000 competitors took part in the preliminary rounds, in addition to an elite jury comprising 12 experts in the fields of the Holy Qur'an and its recitation. — SG
