Zaher Shalhoub’s grandfather had been a famous hunter in Syria. He had taken him on hunting trips since he was a young child teaching him about nature, animals, and how to be a responsible hunter.
When Zaher was 13, his father took him to a skeet shooting competition and he was mesmerized. From that moment on he realized he didn’t want to be a hunter but to continue shooting as a sport.
“Since that day I’ve been dreaming about this. I see the orange target in my dreams,” he says.
But when the war broke out in Syria, Zaher had to flee his home country. In 2015, he reached the Netherlands and started building a new life here. Another passion of his, cooking, led him to start his own catering business Hart van Syrië. After a few years of hard work, he brought his love for Syrian cuisine to the Netherlands, enjoying success and press for his delicious cuisine.
But he also wanted to share this success with others who had found themselves in a similar situation. That’s when Zaher began catering People for People’s Rolling Aid Events for unaccompanied minors.
“Normally the kids don’t have good food in the AZC,” Zaher says. Food isn’t just about nutrition, the scents and flavors of home can bring us back to a place and time in our memories. After catering at one of our Events, Zaher says, “The kids told me it reminded them of their mother’s food. This made them very happy.”
Throughout all this time, he never gave up on his dream to compete at the Olympics.
After arriving in the Netherlands, he began making contacts with other shooting enthusiasts at a local range. From there, his training began again and in 2022 he competed in his first international competition. Next, he went to the Grand Prix in Paris, the World Championship in Cairo, the Asian Games in South Korea, the Asian Championship in Kuwait, and then Doha for the World Cup. After this flurry of world tours, he reached 80th in the world ranking for shooting.
Although Zaher succeeded to reach the qualification score for the Paris 2024 Olympics, he wasn’t selected to compete this year. But this hasn’t deterred his spirit.
“Many times I was very disappointed, I was sad, I’ve felt deep pain, but I always said to myself: ‘No. I’m not going to quit, I’m going to continue.’”
Zaher will again be joining us for our Olympic-themed Rolling Aid Event – Play to Dream – at the Olympic stadium in Amsterdam on August 29th. The main focus will be on encouraging the kids to reach for their dreams by showing them what passion, hard work, and perseverance can bring. Zaher will be an amazing example of this.
“I want to share my story with the children at the AZC because I know they feel they’re living in a tunnel with no light. I want them to know they should never lose hope.”
In the meantime, Zaher continues to train and compete in shooting tournaments across the world all at his own cost. Want to support this hero as he perseveres in his journey to the top? Contact him at Zahershalh@gmail.com or order a delicious meal from Hart van Syrië.
