Bahrain handball team ease past Mongolia in Asian Games opener

Bahrain’s national handball team yesterday (September 20) made a winning start in the ongoing 17th Asian Games in Incheon, in South Korea.

The nationals made east work of an inexperienced Mongolia 57-14 in three-nation Group ‘A’, which also features Saudi Arabia.

Bahrain’s coach Salah Bouchekriou of Algeria started the game with his main players, including Hussain Al Sayyad, Jaffer Abdulqader, Mahdi Madan, Sadeq Ali, Mahmood Abdulqader and goalkeeper Mohammed Abdulhussasin.

Mahmood Abdulqader emerged the game top scorer with eight goals. He was well assisted by Ali Eid, Mohammed Al Maqabi, who fired seven goals apiece.

Hassan Al Samihiji, Mahdi Madan (5), Ali Mirza, Ali Abdulqader (4 each), Hussain Baboor (3), Hussain Al Sayyad, Jaffer Abdulqader and Mohammed Mirza (2 each), Jassim Al Salatna and Sadeq Ali (1 each) were the other scorers.

Taking a significant 31-6 lead at the break, the Bahrainis dominated this 60-minute clash right from the start as the Mongolians struggled in the defence to deny the well-organised attacks from the team in red.

Bochekriou’s squad will resume training today ahead of their next and concluding group stages game against Saudi Arabia tomorrow, which will determine the team to top the group.

Meanwhile, Bahrain’s national shooting team started their campaign yesterday when Lubna Abdulaziz managed 36 place aomong 54 participants in the women’s 10m air rifle, scoring 368 points from 400.

In the men’s 10m air rifle event, Majed Juma scored 545 points from 600 and was 23 overall among 55 shooters, while Majed Abdulla will today participate in the men’s 10m air rifle contest.

Lubna Abdulaziz will be back in action today in the women’s 25m pistol event, while Lulua Ashoor and Aseel Jassim are set for the women’s 10m air rifle.

Elsewhere, Bahrain Olympic Committee general secretary Abdulrahman Askar and committee board member Shikh Ali bin Khalifa Al Khalifa both attended the Olympic Council of Asia General Assembly meeting, chaired by council president Shaikh Ahmed Al Fahad Al Subah of Kuwait, in the presence of the International Olympic Committee president Thomas Bach.

The General Assembly rubber-stamped a decision by its leaders to let Indonesia stage the 2018 Asian Games. Indonesia stepped in after Vietnam pulled out of staging the next games because of the cost. The OCA executive board agreed on Friday to give the event to Indonesia.

Bahrain has sent eight sports teams, comprising 120 athletes and officials in total, for this 16-day edition. The kingdom will be represented in athletics, equestrian, triathlon, shooting, handball, sailing, cycling and bowling.

There are 9,429 from 45 nations in total vying for more than 1,300 medals in 439 events in 36 sports. The Asian Games in Incheon is seen as a great platform by athletes across the nations to test themselves ahead of the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

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