SHOW OF STRENGTH

QATAR reigned supreme in the inaugural four-nation West Asian Women’s Handball Championship, beating Jordan 22-19 in their last round-robin tie.

The four-day event, organised under the auspices of the Asian Handball Federation (AHF), was a joint venture of the Qatar Women’s Sport Committee (QWSC) and Qatar Handball Association.

Qatar remained unbeaten in the tournament held at the Ladies Hall in the Aspire Zone. They notched up a 36-12 win against the UAE in the opener and followed it up with a 30-13 victory against Iraq.

With Jordan also beating the UAE (34-10) and Iraq (25-5) comfortably, their match against the hosts last Monday eventually turned out be a final.

“I’m impressed with the performance of our players. The girls gave their best shot and that paid off as the results show. Our team is improving after every match and it was quite befitting that we won the title,” said QWSC President Ahlam Al Mana.

The official said the event could become an annual feature.

“We’ll seek the Qatar Olympic Committee’s (QOC) support in hosting this tournament again in Doha,” she added.

Iraq, who beat the UAE 21-14 in the penultimate round-robin tie, came third. 

QOC Vice-President Sheikh Saud bin Ali Al Thani and AHF Executive Director Ahmed Abu Alail crowned the winners.