From 11 to 16 July 2017, the world’s best U17 beach handball teams meet in Mauritius to compete in the first edition of the Men’s and Women’s U17 Beach Handball World Championships, which is at the same time the qualification event for the 2018 Youth Olympic Games in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Giampiero Masi, Chairman of the IHF Beach Handball Working Group, conducted the draw, which was held in Mauritius. The results are as follows:

MEN

Group A: BRA, TPE, PAK, MRI

Group B: THA, RUS, VEN, TOG

Group C: ESP, ARG, PAR, RSA

Group D: POR, ITA, AUS, NZL

WOMEN

Group A: ARG, HUN, PAR, CRO

Group B: NED, BRA, TPE, TOG

Group C: CHN, THA, VEN, MRI

Group D: ESP, POR, ASA, AUS

“It was really an exciting moment for all of us”, said Masi after the draw. He expects a tough competition: “The result of the draw doesn’t give us the opportunity to say who will be the favourite. All the groups are really difficult.”

Jimmy Anthonny, the Director of the Organising Committee, now looks forward to the event. It will be a great pleasure for Mauritius to welcome the teams to Flic en Flac and even though the organisation is going to be difficult, they take on the challenge. “We are motivated, we’re understanding the importance of this competition,” explained Anthonny. 

You can follow the event on www.ihf.info and the social media channels at Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.