(Amman, Jordan – October 22, 2008) Under the Patronage of His Excellency Dr.Taiseer Al Nuaimi, Minister of Education, and in the presence of the US Secretary of Health and Human Services, His Excellency Mr. Michael O. Leavitt, the Royal Health Awareness Society (RHAS) held a student training activity for the 4th tournament of King Abdullah II Award for Physical Fitness. The event took place on Wednesday, October 22, 2008 at the Tlaa’ Al-Ali High School sports complex, and was attended by a number of local figures, media representatives, and school students.

The Minister of Education welcomed the guests and expressed the Ministry of Education’s appreciation to the US Department of Health and Human Services for their support, stating that the importance of the project comes from the fact that it targets youth to find eligible and healthy generations, hoping that this cooperation with the US Department of Health and Human Services will continue in order to expand this project to all schools around the Kingdom.

In addition, Mrs. Enaam Barrishi, Director General of the Royal Health Awareness Society (RHAS) gave a welcome speech introducing the guests to the King Abdullah II Award for Physical Fitness, stating that “this project aims at increasing awareness on the importance of physical activity as to become an essential part of the daily lifestyle, encouraging students to discover their fitness abilities and in turn, develop their social and mental skills.”

“The project is constantly growing to encourage a larger number of schools to participate in the award,” said Mr. Samer Al Kasih, Project Manager of the King Abdullah II Award for Physical Fitness, adding that “there are currently 400 thousand participating students from various schools around the Kingdom”.
During the event, guests witnessed several physical exercises carried out by the Tlaa Al Ali School students, in addition to a live folkloric dance performance by a group of other students.  It is good to note that the Tlaa Al Ali School High School has won the King Abdullah II Award for Physical Fitness for the years 2007 and 2008.

At the end of the event, Mrs. Barrishi expressed her gratitude for The Ministry of Education and The US Department of Health and Human Services’ constant support for the Award.

The “King Abdullah II Award” project is a school-based national initiative launched and implemented by the Royal Health Awareness Society (RHAS) in 2005, which aims to increase the levels of physical fitness for youth who make up one third of the Kingdom’s population.