Kuwait U-18 team surpasses Saudi Arabia and advances to the Asian Handball Championship quarterfinals

Yaqoub Al-Awadi

Our national team clinched its ticket to the quarter-finals of the 11th Asian Junior Handball Championship after defeating the Saudi Arabian national team 30-28 in yesterday evening’s match at the Princess Sumaya Hall in Jordan. The game was part of the third and final round of Group 2 in the preliminary stage. With this victory, the Blue Team moved to four points, while Saudi Arabia remained on two points and finished fourth, also securing a spot in the knockout stage.

Following this win, the Blue Team is set to face the South Korean national team tomorrow at the same venue.

Under the guidance of Icelandic head coach Stefan Arnason and national coach Khaled Al-Mulla, the Blue Team is aiming to reach the semi-finals and secure a berth in the 2027 Junior World Championship finals.

National team manager Shakir Artiti expressed confidence in the administrative and technical staff, as well as the players. He said, “We aspire to reach the semi-finals and clinch one of the qualification tickets for the global finals, despite the circumstances surrounding the team, particularly given the recent change in the technical staff.”

Artiti added, “We have several outstanding players capable of representing Kuwaiti handball in a manner befitting the reputation and name of Kuwait across various international platforms.”