SAOUD ABDULLAH AL-BADER

For most of us this name is unknown, but for the water sport’s enthusiastics of Kuwait Saoud is becoming more and more a popular name. He is currently the youngest known male wakeboarder in Kuwait. While we spend a day with him during one of his training session we learned a lot about him. To start he is only eight and half years old. Saoud currently attends the American School of Kuwait and is headed into 4th grade next year. He loves P.E., playing soccer and of course wakeboarding. When we asked him how he learned about wakeboarding he told us, “My aunt was doing it and I asked her if she could sign me up.”

Saoud begin wakeboarding this year in April and has tried to get out on the water as much as he can. When asked about his hardest trick and why he likes wakeboarding, Saoud stated, “I like jumping but I can’t do a complete jump.” In wakeboarding a complete jump is when the wakeboarder can jump from one wake to the other. When asked if Saoud has a favorite wakeboarder he stated his trainer Bader Aljihayem, the team Captain and a male rider on the Kuwait Wakeboard Team and Saoud was quick to add that he thought Aljihayem was really cool!

MAY TALAL AL-FAILAKAWI

One of the youngest female wakeboarders in Kuwait, May Al-Failakawi is a rising star. bazaar magazine had a chance to watch May during one of her training sessions and learned this about her. May is a student at the American School of Kuwait and is headed into Middle School next year.

When asked about her hardest trick and why she likes wakeboarding, May stated, “I like edging out of the wake but it is a little hard edging back into the wake but it’s still very fun.”

May likes to train with her mother and the rest of the Kuwait Wakeboard Team as much as she can. Her favorite time of the day to train is in the afternoon just before sunset. May is also going to compete in the 2010 Malaysian Waterski and Wakeboard Championship this July. She stated, “I am excited to go to my first competition and a little bit nervous, but I know that just competing I am a winner even if I come in last place.”