Qatar wins Asian handball championship for fourth time in a row
Qatar men’s handball team emerged champions of Asia for the fourth time in a row after defeating South Korea 33-21 in the final match of the 19th AHF Asian Men's Handball Championship held in Kuwait City yesterday.
The victory was witnessed by the President of Qatar Olympic Committee (QOC) HE Sheikh Joaan bin Hamad Al Thani, Qatar Handball Association (QHA) President Ahmed Mohamed Al Shabi and other officials.
Qatar, winners in 2014, 2016 and 2018, dominated the game from the beginning and cruised easily to the victory after outperforming the Korean for the second time in this tournament after beating them 34-27 in the main round.
The tournament, held from January 16 to 27 in Kuwait, featured 13 countries including Kuwait (the host), Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, UAE, Qatar, Japan, South Korea, Iraq, Hong Kong, New Zealand, Australia, Iran and China.
مبروك يا أبطال آسيا ??? | منتخبنا #الأدعم ?? لكرة اليد يحقق اللقب الآسيوي الرابع على التوالي بالفوز على #كوريا ?? بنتيجة 33/21 فى نهائي البطولة الآسيوية الـ19 بالكويت
— Qatar Handball ?? (@Qatarhandball) January 27, 2020
? 2014⭐️ - 2016⭐️ - 2018 ⭐️ - 2020 ⭐️#آسيا_٢٠٢٠ #Asia_2020 #Teamqatar pic.twitter.com/OxaHs03G47
Qatar were undefeated throughout the tournament as they posted victories over China and Japan before beating South Korea and Iran in the group stage and Kuwait in the quarter-final league to qualify for the last-four stage where they beat Bahrain to make the final.
With the victory, Qatar qualified along with South Korea, Japan who finished third and Bahrain the fourth, for the 2021 World Men's Handball Championship in Egypt.
“This is a great occasion for Qatar. We were determined from the start and all the players put in an excellent performance,” Qatar’s coach Valero Rivera said. “We were unbeaten throughout and that speaks volumes about the quality of our players,” he added.
Meanwhile, HE Sheikh Joaan has extended congratulations to HH the Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al -Thani, and to the Qatari people, on the national handball team's victory.
His Excellency said that this achievement is the fruit of the efforts of all including the players, the technical and administrative bodies and the Qatar Handball Association (QHA), adding, "We are proud of our national team winning the Asian Championship title as it is a big tournament, where the national team Al ADDAM proved, excelled and strengthened its position on the throne of the Asian continent and that with the strong and distinguished performances they showed during the tournament, by beating all the teams they faced. "
HE Sheikh Joaan praised the performance of the players during the matches and said: All the players were champions and played with a high fighting spirit in all the matches that our team played in the tournament, stressing their competence with continental achievement.
His Excellency stressed that the team's career in the tournament was not easy, whether in the group stage or my semi-final and then the final matches, as we faced strong teams that possess distinctive players, indicating that the next step is to prepare the team in the best way for the next world championship 2021, in order to provide an honourable level of the Asian Champions.
HE Sheikh Joaan also praised the efforts of the Qatar Handball Association (QHA) in making this achievement, and said, "Everyone has made a great effort throughout the past period in order to realize the achievement and raise the flag of Qatar high, and we are waiting for the best from them in the next World Cup Championship."
--
Make sure to check out our social media to keep track of the latest content.
Instagram - @qatarliving
Twitter - @qatarliving
Facebook - Qatar Living
