Marhaba – A Festival of Sport – Rackets Summary

Marhaba – A Festival of Sport: Rackets
15th / 16th July 2023

Another year, another unforgettable Marhaba. This time we had over 280 participants, 40 volunteers and 150 spectators on site in what was our biggest event to date. As we reflect on a weekend which saw 713 incredible games, 96 worthy trophy recipients, 25 separate tournaments, 3 sports and 1 community coming together in the spirit of rackethood; we are truly humbled by the feedback we have received.

We would like to say a massive thank you to: 

• Our event partner, CoEJ who have been with us every step of the way in planning and executing this event
• Our charity partner WF Aid and our parent Jamaat KSIMC of London (Hujjat Stanmore) for their support of all of our events 
• Aldenham School and their management team and caretakers for enabling us once again to hold this Festival at this wonderful venue which feels like home to us at SJ and being on hand to provide us with everything we needed
• All of our sponsors, donors and well wishers without whom we would not be able to hold such an event
• Our volunteers and coordinators who have worked tirelessly in the lead up to this event and over the course of the weekend to help us deliver all of this. The catering team, the umpires, the runners, the marshals, score desk and registration desk volunteers – there are too many to name but you all know who you are! We are humbled by your dedication, hard work and selflessness. We definitely would not have been able to do this without any of you
• All participants especially those who attended from external Jamaats – we hope you had a fantastic time and felt welcomed through the event
• The AV team led by Shahidali Khaki and all gents volunteers who helped in the set up, clean up and in the car park 
• The Head of Gents Sports – Shaneabbas Merali – and his team who have helped us behind the scenes with everything from the heavy lifting to small details

Congratulations to all the winners and finalists. A full honours list as well as gallery of pictures from the event will be published after the months of Muharram and Safar 

We would be grateful if you could provide us with your feedback on the event. This helps us to understand what went well and what we can improve on and is a valuable source of information for us so please take the time out to complete the short form below: 

Here are a few initial pictures from the weekend: