MUSCAT - Oman national handball team will get a new coach soon, according to Oman Handball Association (OHA) Chairman Said al Shuhri.
“Everything is ready for Egyptian coach Mohammed Abdul al Mouti to join the Oman national handball team,” Al Shuhri told Oman Observer.
“The Oman Handball Association is expecting to unveil the coach in October. The coach will be in charge of the national handball teams,” the OHA chief said on the sidelines of signing a support and sponsorship agreement with Zubair Corporation under the Oman Olympic Committee programme ‘Sport for Development.”
The OHA intends to improve the standard of Oman handball players with the induction of the experienced coach from Egypt.
Oman handball team is currently ranked eighth in Asia.
Oman beach handball team is meanwhile set for a sixth World Cup appearance next year in Kazan, Russia.
“Our main focus is obviously to improve our position in the beach handball world championships. We are now placed seventh in the world. I think we have the capability to break into the top five and probably aim for a medal.”
Oman’s best performance in the world championships was a seventh place finish in the 2016 World Championships in Budapest, Hungary.
The national beach handball team is coached by Hamoud al Hosni from Oman.
Oman had hosted a world championship from July 8-13, 2012. Oman finished eighth in the 12-team championship.
Al Shuhri has ambitious plans to develop the game in the Sultanate.
“We are aiming to boost out junior squads so that the future of handball in the country remains intact.”
The junior handball team played in a tri-nation tournament in Doha recently along with hosts Qatar and Iran – both strong teams in handball.
Though Oman finished third in the tournament, Al Shuhri said the exposure will give the Oman juniors a world of good.
“Qatar and Iran are strong sides and our players would have learnt a lot in terms of tricks of the game from these sides.”
“We look forward to take part in as many tournaments as possible to give good exposure to the young players,” the handball chief said.
The next main championship for the handball team is the 18th Asian Men’s Championship in South Korea from January 18 to 28, 2018.
For the junior side, main focus will be the 16th Asian Men’s Junior Championship in July 2018 and Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires in Argentina from October 6-12, 2018.
In the coming November, Oman will take part in an Arab level tournament in Saudi Arabia.
Anuroop Athiparambath
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