Bahrain men’s senior national team secured their maiden gold medal in the handball competition at the Asian Games, after a dramatic 33:32 win against Qatar in the final.

This title follows the maiden gold medal won by the Gulf state at the AHF Asian Men’s Handball Championship earlier this year, in January.

Nine teams lined up at the start of the men’s handball competition at this edition of the Asian Games, which took place between 19 and 29 September in Inazawa and Kasugai, Japan.

Group A was dominated by the winner of the last three editions, Qatar, which won all three matches, against hosts Japan (37:28), the People’s Republic of China (30:25) and Hong Kong, China (40:17).

Japan, which won against China (31:27) and Hong Kong, China (44:17) were second, with the People’s Republic of China third and Hong Kong, China fourth, all sides progressing to the quarter-finals.

In Group B, Bahrain swept their opponents in spectacular fashion. They first took a 43:20 win over Kazakhstan, following up with a 34:20 win against the Islamic Republic of Iran and a 30:21 win over the Republic of Korea.

Bahrain finished on the first place thanks to a 28:25 win over Kuwait, with the battle for the next places being quite hectic.

The Republic of Korea finished second, as they won against Kuwait (26:23) and Kazakhstan (44:22), drawing in the match against the Islamic Republic of Iran, 26:26. Kuwait’s 26:24 inaugural win against Iran was decisive in the Gulf side finishing third, while Kazakhstan were eliminated from contention.

The knock-out phase of the competition started on 26 September, with the four quarter-finals being quite clearly dominated by the favourites.

Unbeaten Bahrain and Qatar secured their places in the semi-finals without an issue, with the former side taking a 37:16 win over Hong Kong, China, while the latter clinched a 31:25 win over the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Republic of Korea and hosts Japan completed the quartet, with a 32:26 win over the People’s Republic of China and a 37:32 win over Kuwait respectively.

In the semi-finals, Bahrain and Japan were locked in a tense battle, with a 16:16 deadlock at the break. Mohamed Naser scored eight goals in the match to lift Bahrain to a 35:31 win in the second half and secure a place in the final for the third time in a row for the Gulf team.

Qatar also secured their fourth consecutive spot in the final of the Asian Games, thanks to a 32:30 win against Korea, after the first half saw the same result, 16:16, as in the other semi-final.

Qatar had previously won the final against Bahrain in the 2018 and 2022 editions of the Asian Games, but this time around, the scenario flipped and it was Bahrain who dictated the tempo.

From the get-go, Bahrain were leading Qatar, 7:6, after 11 minutes, increasing the lead to three goals in the 20th minute, 12:9. But Qatar came back and tied the score, 15:15, only for Bahrain to secure a one-goal lead at the break, 16:15.

Qatar never took the lead in the second half, only managing to tie the score again, 19:19, after five minutes. A 3:0 run for Bahrain midway in the second half saw them open another three goal lead, 28:25.

The final moments were dramatic, as Bahrain held a one goal lead, 32:31, with moments to go in the match. Right wing Ahmed Fadhul then scored the decider with three seconds left, 33:31, with the final score set by Ahmad Madadi, as Bahrain celebrated their maiden gold medal.

Ahmed Kadhem and Ahmed Jalal both scored seven goals for Bahrain in their win.

In the bronze medal match, Japan secured the last place on the podium, with a 37:32 win over the Republic of Korea.

Japan’s Kota Nakata was the top scorer of the competition, with 41 goals, followed by Qatar’s Frankis Marzo, with 40 goals, and another Qatar player, Ahmed Madadi, with 38 goals.

Bahrain secured their fourth medal in history at the Asian Games and the first gold one, with Qatar clinching their sixth medal and their second silver in history. For Japan, it was the seventh medal, after winning three silvers and three bronze medals in the past editions.

Photo credit: Asian Handball Federation / Asian Games