HANDBALL – BAHRAIN’S senior men’s handball national team are stepping up their preparations for the 22nd Asian Men’s Handball Championship.
The continental tournament takes place from January 15 to 29 in Kuwait City, and it will act as the Asian Handball Federation (AHF) qualifier for the 30th IHF Men’s Handball World Championship, to be held in Germany from January 13 to 29 in 2027.
As part of the lead-up to the event, the kingdom’s squad have travelled to Europe for a pair of tune-up participations.
They departed on Saturday for Portugal where they will play a pair of friendly games against the hosts’ national team, who were fourth overall – just out of the medal positions – in the 29th IHF Men’s Handball World Championship, held last year and co-hosted by Croatia, Denmark, and Norway.
The Bahrainis and Portuguese face off on the court today and tomorrow. Following these games, the nationals will then travel to Switzerland, where they will play an international tournament that also features the senior men’s national teams of Macedonia, Ukraine, and the host Swiss.
The kingdom’s delegation that is currently overseas is headed by Bahrain Handball Federation national teams director Ismael Baqer. Bahrain head coach Robert Hedin from Sweden has called up a 19-player side for this preparation period, led by inspirational captain Hussain Al Sayyad, who is scheduled to join the team directly in Switzerland following the completion of his rehab programme from a current injury.
Other players on the roster are Mohammed Abdulhussain, Mohammed Habib Ahmed, Mohammed Habib Nasser, Hassan Al Samaheeji, Hussain Mahfoudh, Jaffar Abdulshaheed, Mohammed Hameed, Hesham Ahmed, Salman Al Showaikh, Qassim Qamber, Ahmed Redha, Sayed Ali Basem, Hassan Madan, Ahmed Almaqabi, Ali Mahmood, Jassim Khamis, Ali Redha, and Ali Alasheeri.
Hassan Mirza was also named by Hedin but will not be joining the Bahrainis after suffering an injury during their second of two friendlies against Iran’s national team, held in the kingdom last week.
Following their Swiss foray, the Bahrainis are scheduled to return to Bahrain before heading to Kuwait City for the Asian championship.
Bahrain – gold medal winners from last year’s sixth Islamic Solidarity Games – are one of 15 nations from across Asia set to hit the court in the AHF event.
They will be playing in Group B of the preliminary round alongside Iraq, China, and Jordan. Group A features defending champions Qatar, South Korea, and Oman; Group C is composed of the UAE, Hong Kong, India, and hosts Kuwait; and Group D comprises Iran, Saudi Arabia, Australia, and Japan, who were the silver medallists from the previous edition.
Bahrain hosted the last Asian championship in 2024, where they finished as bronze medallists.
The nationals open their campaign against Jordan on January 16, and then play China on January 18. They then complete the opening round against Iraq on January 20.
Following this single round-robin, the top two teams from each group move on to the main round, where they will be divided into two further groups. After another round, the semi-finalists will be determined, who will clash on January 27. All four teams in this stage will also book their berths in the worlds in 2027.
The gold and bronze medal games are then set for January 29.
The teams who do not qualify for the main stage will compete in the consolation bracket for the Martyr Fahad Al Ahmad Al Sabah Cup.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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