Winner of Russia's Quran Contest Apologized to Iran's Representative

Iran's representative in the 15th edition of Moscow International Holy Quran Competition says the winner of the contest apologized to him after winners were announced.

"The Brunei reciter was surprised at being announced the top winner of the competition," Mehdi Gholamnejad, who came second in the contest told Fars news agency.
"He apologized and told me that my performance had been better," Gholamnejad said.
The Iranian Quran reciter said he expected to come first with a margin of at least 5 points but the jury announced the Bruneian Qari as the top winner and him as the runner-up.
Gholamnejad described the level of the international competition as high and said representatives of Indonesia, Brunei, Afghanistan and Turkey were his main rivals.
38 countries took part in the international Quranic event, which was held by Russia's Muftis Council in cooperation with the country's foreign ministry.
In 2010, the contest was included in the list of events organized under the aegis of UNESCO.
This year, Iran's Cultural Center in Moscow mounted a Quran exhibition on the sidelines of the competition.