With the participation of 11 paragliders from several Arab and foreign countries, the paragliding event entitled “touch the sky of Syria” was opened on Thursday at “Marina” site on the corniche and Arwad Island in Tartous province.
The ten-day sport activity , which is held for the first time in Tartous , is organized by the French company “VIP Paris Paramotor” in cooperation with the Syrian Paragliding Club, the Cypriot Aviation Club, the French R .Ultralight Club and Cham Wings Airlines.
In a statement to reporters, Omar Maghribi a member of the Syrian Paragliding Club said that the paragliders will present special shows every day .There will also be air ballooning, pointing to the possibility of holding this event in other governorates, especially since it was held previously in Homs Governorate.
The event coordinator, Ruba Abdullah, explained that paragliding is a new experience in Syria, but it is distinctive and has a global presence, stressing that it is being held in Tartous to show the world that Syria is still vibrant and undestroyed by terrorism.
She noted that the first day included a trip for a number of students from “Dar Al-Aman” School for the Children of Martyrs to Arwad Island, accompanied by paragliding to fly the wish balloon from there.
Abdullah added on the first day of the sport event, two of the ten participating paragliders presented distinguished shows that impressed the attendees and spent about twenty minutes in the air at a distance of approximately 150 meters.
She pointed to the participation of the world-class professional paraglider in the field of paragliding, Manuel Tejero Lopes, who came from Spain for the first time to Syria.
Lopes explained that he came at the request of his father to see that Syria enjoys a normal life , stressing that he was deeply attracted to many beautiful things and he will present special shows every day in this beautiful place.
In turn, the world-class professional paraglider, Dimitris Koliakos, who comes from Greece, indicated that he participates in this event to present his most beautiful shows every day in addition to filming the place from the air due to its proximity to the sea. Hussein Salhab, a member of the board of directors of the Syrian Association for Exploration and Documentation, “I am Syrian,” said that holding Paramotor sports or paragliding in Syria has an important indications and it addresses a message to the world that the Syrian people have the will to live and are able to build themselves.
For her part, Dana Al-Jawabra from the Marketing Department of Cham Wings Company pointed out that this sport event is important at the international level with the
participation of pilots from several countries, expressing her hope that the sport of paragliding will develop in Syria.
Rawaa Ghanam