The next 18 months could be a watershed for beach handball in Africa. Starting with the opening stage of the 2025 IHF Beach Handball Global Tour in Hammamet, Tunisia, swiftly followed by the 2025 IHF Men’s and Women’s Youth Beach Handball World Championships at the same venue and then, after a short pause, the 2026 Youth Olympic Games will throw-off in October in Dakar, Senegal.

And one of the nations who could benefit from having tournaments in their home continent is Kenya. 

Popularised amongst the wider sporting community by the inspirational Caroline Nyadiero the sport has found a foothold in the country, leading to a variety of competitions taking place regularly throughout the country, across genders and age groups.

To prepare for Tunisia, training and talent identification sessions were held in Mombasa, Kilifi and Malindi last December and in January, followed by a short youth beach handball festival, tour and further training sessions.

It is no surprise that the Kenyan women’s team are going all-out to win in Hammamet – an 11-hour flight from Kenyan capital Nairobi or 7,500km drive – but with a preliminary group including the European YAC 16 champions Netherlands, the fifth-placed Germany and Asian champions China, Kenya will need to cause a big upset to become one of the three teams who qualify through to the main round.

With no competitive action to their names, the Kenyan squad are a completely unknown entity, but have a core group of five players who all play their club beach handball with Glorious BHC.

“We are hoping for the best,” said Kenya women’s captain Grace Simiyu Bahati, who plays for Coast Combined, to ihf.info about the group draw. “We believe in God and we know that victory is on our side.”

Whatever happens in the preliminary round, Hammamet will provide a crucial platform for the Kenyan women to achieve their dream of qualifying through the first-ever Olympic Games to be held in the African continent.

“Every match is an opportunity to grow, to inspire, and to take one step closer to the grand stage of the Youth Olympic Games,” explained coach Nyadiero, who is also a Kenyan Handball Federation (KHF) Executive Member and responsible for the sport in the country.

“We want this experience to fuel the drive for our teams to qualify for more championships and to one day compete at the very top. The U17 Beach Handball World Championship is a proving ground for young athletes where skill, determination and teamwork will define the future of the sport – the road ahead is challenging, but the rewards are immense. This is where champions are made.”

Coach: Caroline Nyadiero

Key players: Arella Mumbi

Qualification information: CAHB Nomination

History in tournament: 2017-2022: DNQ 

Group at Tunisia 2025: Group B – Netherlands (NED), Germany (GER), People’s Republic of China (CHN), Kenya (KEN)