AMMAN, July 17: The Kuwait youth handball team is set for a crucial match against Jordan, marking the start of the first group matches in the main round of the 18th Asian Youth Handball Championship. This tournament, held in Amman, Jordan, also serves as a qualifier for the 2025 World Cup finals in Poland.

Today’s main-round matches include Oman vs. Iran, Korea vs. Bahrain, and Japan vs. Saudi Arabia. In the consolation round, Qatar will face China, and Hong Kong will compete against Chinese Taipei. In the main round draw, Kuwait is placed in Group 1 alongside Bahrain, Jordan, and South Korea. Group 2 consists of Saudi Arabia, Iran, Oman, and Japan.

The Kuwaiti will play Bahrain next Saturday and conclude the group matches against South Korea the following day. The tournament system stipulates that the top two teams from each of the four preliminary groups advance to the main round, which is divided into two groups of four teams each. The top two teams from each group will qualify for the semi-finals, securing a place in the 2025 World Youth Cup finals.

In the preliminary round, Kuwait defeated China 28-24 but lost to Iran 23-25, advancing to the main round alongside the Iranian team. The youth handball team prepared for the Asian Championship with an external camp in Slovenia, where it played eight trial matches. These included two matches against Montenegro, two against Saudi Arabia, and one each against Slovenia, Austria, a Chinese team, and Croatia.

The team delegation in the Asian Championship is led by the Secretary of the Kuwait Handball Association, Qayed Al-Adwani. The team includes Board of Directors member Mubarak Al-Daihani, national teams director Faisal Siwan, youth team director Abdulaziz Al-Zaabi, administrator Khaled Al-Gharib, coach Saeed Hegazy and his assistant Muhammad Masoudan, goalkeeper coach Marwan Maqayez, therapist Mahdi Al-Bakoush, and technical analyst Ayman Al-Sheikh, along with 20 players.

Khaled El Anzi

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff