Muscat: The Oman national team is undergoing extensive training ahead of the 8th Asian Youth Handball Championship, which will be held in Jordan capital Amman from July 14 to July 25. The three-day internal camp will start on July 1, followed by the external camp in Egypt from July 4 to 11, where the team will play friendly matches against the Egyptian youth team and some local clubs.
Oman will open its campaign in the championship against India on July 14 and Jordan on July 15. Two teams from each group will qualify for the second round of the championship.
Currently, the team is training in the main hall of the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex in Bausher under the leadership of national coach Yahya Al Maashari and his assistant Hassan Al Maamari, with a focus on raising the physical fitness level and applying tactical plans to reach full readiness before the competitions. The team aims to have a distinguished participation and qualify for the second round, with a focus on the qualifying stage for the finals of the World Youth Handball Championship.
The Asian Championship includes 13 teams divided into four groups. Group A includes Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and Hong Kong, while Group B includes Kuwait, Iran, and China. Group C consists of Oman, Jordan, and India, while Group D includes Japan, South Korea, Chinese Taipei, and Qatar. The championship will be played in a single round-robin system in the first stage, with the top two teams from each group qualifying for the second stage.
The technical staff has reduced the number of players to 17 who will participate in the championship. Al Maashari also confirmed that the team's training is proceeding according to the plan approved by the federation's board of directors, with a focus on technical and tactical training and increasing physical fitness doses. Al Maashari pointed out that the external camp in Egypt will be an opportunity to test the players and identify the team's strengths and weaknesses to address them before the championship. He added that the friendly matches in the Egypt camp aim to enhance the understanding between the players and train them on the atmosphere of the matches.
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