45th King Abdulaziz Quran Contest Winners' Announcement Soon
The winners of the 45th King Abdulaziz International Competition for Memorizing, Reciting, and Interpreting Holy Quran will be honored in a closing ceremony at the Grand Mosque in Makkah
Makkah al Mukarramah: The winners of the 45th King Abdulaziz International Competition for Memorizing, Reciting, and Interpreting Holy Quran will be honored in a closing ceremony at the Grand Mosque in Makkah.
“The closing ceremony of the 45th King Abdulaziz International Competition for Memorizing, Reciting, and Interpreting Holy Quran will be held in the courtyard of the Makkah Grand Mosque where the winners will be honored”, the Saudi Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah and Guidance said.
As part of their program finalised by the ministry, the participants are touring different historical places of religeous and architectural importance. The participants on Saturday left for visit to The Prophet (PBUH) Mosque in Madinah. The closing ceremony will be held after their return to Makkah from the Prophet's City.
"The participants of the 45th King Abdulaziz International Quran Memorization Competition left Makkah, heading to Madinah, after the conclusion of the final rounds. A program has been prepared for them, including a visit to the Prophet’s Mosque, the Noble Rawdah, and several Islamic landmarks, with the winners to be honored at the closing ceremony in the Grand Mosque", the Ministry said in a post on X Saturday without confirming the exact date and time.
The final rounds of the 2025 King Abdulaziz International Competition for Memorizing, Reciting, and Interpreting Holy Quran began last Saturday August 09, 2025.
5 categories
The competition is divided into five categories:
- Memorization of the entire Holy Qur’an, with accurate recitation and intonation following the seven rules of recitation
- Memorization of the Qur’an along with interpretation of its terms
- Memorization of 15 juz (parts) of the Qur’an with proper recitation and intonation
- Memorization of five juz with correct recitation and intonation
- A category for shorter lengths of memorization with corresponding recitation and intonation requirements.
- A total of 179 contestants from 128 countries were selected for the final rounds after the qualifying rounds held online.
As many as 27 contestants recited Quran as per the contest guidelines on the last day of final rounds Thursday August 14, 2025.
The 27 contestants were from Mauritania, the Philippines, Japan, Guinea-Bissau, France, the United States of America, New Zealand, South Africa, Barbados, Ivory Coast, Cameroon, Guinea, Germany, Zambia, Guyana, Comoros, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Finland, Rwanda, Bangladesh, and Myanmar.
Makkah Quran Contest Prize Money
The total value of the competition’s prizes is around SR4 million ($1.07 million), in addition to SR1 million that will be apportioned out to all participants.
The top prize in the first category is SR 500,000, the top prize for the second category is SR 300,000, for the third category the top prize is SR 200,00, for the fourth category SR 150,000 and for the 5th and last category the first prize is SR 65,000.
The 44th edition of the King Abdulaziz International Competition for Memorization, Recitation, and Interpretation of Holy Quran was also held with the same schedule. Saudi National, Saad bin Ibrahim bin Hamd had won the top prize of the 2024 Makkah Quran Contest.
"Electronic Judging System"
The highlight of the 2025 Quran Contest which ran through six days was electronic judging system. Since its introduction in 2019, the electronic platform has replaced traditional paper-based methods, increasing accuracy and transparency.
The Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah and Guidance said it enhanced and upgraded the electronic judging system for the 45th King Abdulaziz International Competition for Memorizing, Reciting, and Interpreting the Holy Quran held this year.
The enhanced system is designed to improve the efficiency and fairness of the final rounds, bolster transparency, and support the ministry's digital transformation efforts in line with Saudi Vision 2030.
The latest improvements to the system include faster and more accurate scoring, with results calculated more precisely and linked to a real-time electronic control panel for instant monitoring by the judging committee.
An electronic question bank is now used to draw questions from a comprehensive digital repository covering all five branches of the competition, ensuring diversity and fairness. The system also features automated processes that track verse sequences, sort and rank contestants, and issue results instantly, while documenting and analyzing competition data in real time.
"Outstanding Performances"
The Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dawah and Guidance said T=this year’s edition featured intense competition, marked by exceptional recitation quality, precise memorization, eloquent delivery, and melodious voices.
"The high level of performance reflected a deep global reverence for the Quran and signaled the emergence of a promising new generation of Quran memorizers worldwide", the Ministry said.
An elite panel of internationally recognized judges, all specialists in Quranic sciences, oversaw the evaluations.
Watch Final Rounds
Companions and families of the participating contestants are praising Saudi Arabia for its deep commitment to honoring Quran.
“In Japan, we are honored to take part in this competition every year, and we send our best contestants after intensive preparation, with the competition being held at the Grand Mosque and featuring elite reciters", Tayyib Hoki, one of the companions from Japan, said describing the competition as both a dream and an honor for every Muslim.
Osman Hussein, a companion from Somalia, highlighted the historic and spiritual value of the event, motivating Muslim youth around the world to memorize Quran.
A Zimbabwean companion, Mahmouda Ismail, praised the spiritually uplifting atmosphere provided for both participants and their families.
Saleha Patel from Sierra Leone described her son's participation as a dream come true.
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