Bahrain face Kuwait for Asian handball bronze

TDT | Manama                                                     

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain take on Kuwait today for the bronze medals in the 21st Asian Men’s Handball Championship, taking place in the Kingdom.

Meanwhile, five-time defending champions Qatar go up against Japan for gold.

Both contests are the culmination of the Asian Handball Federation event, which comes to a close at Khalifa Sports City Arena in Isa Town.

The Bahrainis and Kuwaitis clash at 4pm.

Bahrain are aiming for their second bronze medals in the competition to go with their five silver medals.

They made it to the game for third place after losing their semi-final to Japan 17-20. At 6.30pm, the Qataris take on the Japanese for the title.

Qatar are aiming for a record sixth straight crown after qualifying for their seventh successive final.

Japan, on the other hand, are hoping to claim their third gold, to go with five silver and five bronze.

It is the first time back for the Japanese in the final since 2004, when they lost to Kuwait.

Their last championship came in 1979, so they will be looking to end a drought of 25 years.

Qatar beat Kuwait 33-26 in the final four to book their place in the title contest.

Tonight’s final is a replay of the main round clash between the two sides, which ended in a 28-all stalemate following a last-gasp goal from Japan.

Aside from competing for the medals, each of the top four have also qualified for the 2025 IHF World Men’s Handball Championship, to be held in Croatia, Denmark, and Norway.

The rest of the tournament’s final classification has already been set.

Ranked from fourth through 16th, respectively, are South Korea, Iran, the UAE, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, China, Chinese Taipei, Oman, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, New Zealand and India.

Bahrain has hosted the Asian Men’s Handball Championship for the fifth time in its history. The previous four times were in 2016, 2014 and 1993.