11-year-old Syrian boy outsmarts adults in trivia challenge at Sharjah Book Fair

Eleven-year-old Syrian contestant Adam Al Miqdad outperformed both children and adults in a lively general knowledge challenge hosted by Lebanese content creator and digital entrepreneur Robert Akrouch at the 45th Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF 2026).

Held at the fair's Social Media Station, the interactive session, titled ‘Can You Beat the Challenge? | A Live Quiz with Rob Quiz’, brought Akrouch's popular trivia format to a live audience, with contestants competing to answer questions spanning geography, biology and other subjects featured in his RobQuiz app.

Adam, who attended the fair with his mother and sibling, emerged as the winner after several rounds of questioning, demonstrating his knowledge against contestants of different ages.

Akrouch said the challenge was designed to make learning enjoyable while encouraging visitors to remain curious and explore new subjects.

“I want SIBF visitors to gain some knowledge in a fun and interactive way. Ultimately, I want them to be more curious and ask questions. That's what I do, so I would like other people to do it too,” he said.

The Lebanese creator has built a following across the Arab world through interactive social media content, including formats such as ‘Double or Lose’ and ‘Don't Answer Like Me’.

His RobQuiz platform offers Arabic-language trivia games covering a range of subjects, including a quiz format inspired by Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, allowing users to test their knowledge while learning new facts.

Organised by the Sharjah Book Authority, the 45th Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF 2026) runs from November 4 to 15 at Expo Centre Sharjah under the theme ‘Made of Stories’, with the Sultanate of Oman as Guest of Honour.