A dramatic final, decided by the lowest of margins, in the final seconds, saw the Republic of Korea take the title at the 2026 AHF Asian Men's Junior Handball Championship, with a 25:24 win over the United Arab Emirates. The competition saw 13 teams take part, with Chuzhou, People's Republic of China hosting the event between 15 and 27 July.

Korea were the winners of Group B in the preliminary round, taking five wins and drawing one match, but their quarter-final match against the Chinese Taipei was not necessarily a walk in the park.

Yongchan Ju, Jinuk Jang and Yeongu Choi combined for 19 goals in their team’s win, 30:26, while the two sides were deadlocked at half-time, 14:14, with the Chinese Taipei really providing stiff competition.

The most lopsided quarter-final was the one between the United Arab Emirates and the People’s Republic of China, as UAE dominated from start to finish, on the back of a 10-goal outing from Ahmed Nofal.

Bahrain also beat Iran, 31:24, while the last semi-finalist was Saudi Arabia, which, at that point, extended their winning streak to six matches in a row, after a strong start against Kuwait.

Saudi Arabia led 7:0 after eight minutes and never looked back, only for Kuwait to try a comeback late in the match. In the end, Saudi Arabia secured a 25:23 win.

Both semi-finals were decided by a single goal. However, Saudi Arabia’s strong start, 7:1, against the UAE, did not help them secure the win this time, as their opponents clawed their way back into the match.

By the 29th minute, the United Arab Emirates had cut the lead to a single goal, 15:16, and wrestled back the lead, 20:19, in the 40th minute, with Eyad Toukhy shining for his side.

The gap grew bigger and bigger (31:26, with three minutes to go), only for Saudi Arabia to cut the lead to a single goal, 31:30, and concede the loss.

The Republic of Korea also had a fiery end of the semi-final against Bahrain. Korea led by three goals, 12:9, after 21 minutes, and led by a single goal, 14:13, at the break.

While Bahrain did tie the score, they started to wear down in the last minutes and Korea took a 32:31 win, making the final for the third time in four editions in the competition.

There, Korea, which were unbeaten at this point, exactly as their opponents, the United Arab Emirates, started the match far from their usual sharpness. By the 17th minute, the UAE were leading, 9:5, and looked like they were heading to their first title since 1996.

Yeongu Choi and Yongchan Ju, though, had a different opinion, and pummelled the UAE defence with eight goals apiece, helping Korea bounce back. Down five goals in the 35th minute, 11:16, Korea beefed up their defence, with goalkeeper Ohjun Kwon making seven key saves in the second half.

With 10 minutes left, Korea were leading, 20:19, but two quick goals in succession for the UAE saw the lead change hands once again. But with Korea conceding only once in the last eight minutes, the buzzer beater from Yongchan Ju was decisive, helping their side take a 25:24 win.

It was Korea’s fourth title, after the ones in 1988, 1992 and 2018, and UAE’s first silver medal in the history of the competition.

In the bronze medal match, Saudi Arabia secured a clear 37:27 win against Bahrain.

Korea’s Yeongu Choi was the top scorer of the competition, with 64 goals, followed by Islamic Republic of Iran’s Omid Enayati Joo, with 61 goals, and Kuwait’s Yosef Madwah, with 56 goals.

The 2026 AHF Asian Men's Junior Handball Championship was a qualification event for the 2027 IHF Men’s Junior World Championship, with the top four sides securing their tickets for the event.

Therefore, the Republic of Korea, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain will take part in the world handball flagship competition next year.

Photo credit: AHF / Chinese Handball Association