Bahrain
continued an unwanted record at the 18th AHF Men’s Asian Championship in Korea
which completed late on Saturday night (28 January).
The
2018 edition was their fourth final in the past five championships, and like
their previous appearances, they could only go home with the silver medal.
Despite
leading 17:16 at half-time against the strong Qataris, which included a
three-goal (9:6) lead after 12 minutes, Gudmundur Gudmundsson’s Bahrain team succumbed
again to their nemesis in the final – the same final as the previous two
editions, with the same end result: a Qatar win.
Valero
Rivera’s Qataris showed their dominance again as the fans in the Suwon
Gymnasium, Korea – many of whom had stayed in the arena after watching the
hosts take bronze after a 29:21 win over Saudi Arabia – saw a masterclass in
defence and attack.
Qatar’s
left back Frankis Carol, who plays his club handball for VELUX EHF Champions
League side Sporting CP in Portugal, was named as Most Valuable Player in the
final and he led the way for his side, scoring at crucial points in the 60
minutes to finish with eight goals, alongside his teammate, Bertrand Roine, who
plays his club handball for Al Ahli SC in Doha.
“Our
team deserved to win the title,” said Rivera to local Qatari media after the
final. “This achievement is a result of the hard work put in both by the team
and the management over the past few years.
“The
game was not easy,” he continued. “I was not happy with the team’s performance
in the first half. But in the second half we played well and managed to raise
our game considerably and win the title.
“There
is no doubt that we are the best in Asia. Our third straight title proves it
beyond doubt. Winning the Asian title was an ambitious project for us. I thank
all the players for their efforts.”
Notable
results over the final two match days included a second win for Australia in
their debut Asian tournament, beating India 27:24 and a small piece of Asian
history as Bangladesh – also in their maiden tournament – getting their first
ever points and win, with a 31:24 victory over New Zealand.
With
their top four finishes, Qatar, Bahrain, Korea and Saudi Arabia have all sealed
qualification for the 2019 IHF Men’s World Championship in Germany/Denmark.
RESULTS
Saturday 28 January
FINAL (1/2 Placement)
QAT
vs BRN 33:31 (16:17)
Bronze Medal (3/4 Placement)
KOR
vs KSA 29:21 (16:6)
Friday 26 January
SEMI-FINALS
QAT vs KOR
32:21 (14:8)
KSA vs BRN
22:24 (11:11)
5/6
PLACEMENT
IRI vs
JPN 33:28 (15:15)
7/8
PLACEMENT
OMA vs
UAE 24:28 (12:14)
9/10
PLACEMENT
UZB vs
CHN 21:32 (8:19)
11/12
PLACEMENT
IND vs
AUS 24:27 (12:10)
13/14 PLACEMENT
NZL vs BAN 24:31 (10:16)
FINAL RANKING
1
Gold QAT*
2
Silver BRN*
3
Bronze KOR*
4
KSA*
5 IRI
6 JPN
7 UAE
8 OMA
9 CHN
10 UZB
11
AUS
12
IND
13
BAN
14
NZL
*qualified
for 2019 IHF Men’s World Championship, GER/DEN
For further information visit www.asianhandball.org. For
a complete summary of the results click on the link below.