Doha: Al Rayyan SC has called on the fans to support Qatar’s national handball team in the men’s Asian qualifiers for Paris 2023 Olympic Games. The Qualification event will take place at Duhail Handball Sports Hall in Doha from October 18-28. The Paris Games is scheduled to be from July 25–August 11.
As many as 11 teams are taking part in the event including hosts Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, India, Iran, South Korea, Japan, China, and Kazakhstan. The winning side will confirm their Olympic ticket while runners-up will book a play-off spot. Qatar will start its campaign with a match against China today.
This invitation comes as part of the Rayyan’s youth body’s efforts to attract the largest number of audiences.
The fan engagement is being ushered under auspices of the Ministry of Sports and Youth and the Ministry of Education and Higher Education and 4 schools are actively participating in it: Mohamed bin Abdul Wahhab Secondary School for Boys, Jassim Bin Hamad Secondary School for Boys, Rashid Secondary Kindergarten for Boys, and Mohamed bin Abdullah Secondary School for Boy.
Faisal al-Hammadi, head of the youth team at Al Rayyan SC, said, “Our call to support our national team in the Asian qualifiers for the Paris Olympics 2023 comes within our responsibility to stand by our national teams when they appear in international events. We are thrilled to announce that we have received support from the youth body of Al Rayyan Sports Club and school students.”
“There will be a large attendance starting from the first confrontation of our team against its Chinese counterpart, and we hope, God willing, that we will succeed at the beginning of the journey and achieve victory.”
He continued: “Our support for our national teams will not stop, but will continue strongly. There will be special arrangements for our next senior football team to face important challenges in the upcoming Asian Cup, in addition to the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.”
President of the Qatar Handball Association (QHA) Ahmed al-Shaabi said that all preparations to stage the event in a befitting manner have been completed. The tournament will continue until October 28. Al-Shaabi said Qatar team, which recently clinched third consecutive gold medal at the Asian Games, is ready to compete in the qualifiers despite a short time to recover from Hangzhou stint.
Group A: Qatar, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, United Arab Emirates, India, China
Group B: Bahrain, Iran, Kuwait, Uzbekistan, Japan, Kazakhstan
Faisal al-Hammadi, head of the youth team at Al Rayyan SC.
