Al-Adwani honors Hasan Boland at World Championship.

KUWAIT CITY, Aug 20: Kuwait Handball Association Secretary, Qaed Al-Adwani, stressed that academic commitments remain one of the biggest challenges facing the preparation of the national handball teams.

“When preparing our national teams for international competitions, we face many obstacles — the most significant being academic responsibilities. These prevent players from maintaining regular training schedules and, in some cases, even stop top talents from joining the national team in major tournaments,” Al-Adwani explained.

He pointed to the U-19 national team’s participation in the recent World Championship in Cairo as a clear example. The squad had only 18 to 20 days of preparation — far less than other teams, which train year-round. “Despite the short preparation, our players still delivered an impressive performance at the World Cup, thanks to the efforts of the coaching and administrative staff,” he added.

Al-Adwani called on the relevant authorities to cooperate with sports federations, particularly in matters related to academics, to ease the challenges players face and ensure Kuwait is represented on the international stage in a way that reflects its stature.

Meanwhile, Kuwait’s U-17 national team continues its local training camp ahead of the Asian Championship — the qualifiers for the Junior World Cup in Morocco — which will kick off in Jordan on September 15 under Croatian coach Ivan and his Kuwaiti assistant Khaled Al-Mulla.

On a separate note, handball referees are also preparing for the 2025-2026 season with daily training sessions and theoretical seminars. Referees Committee Chairman Ahmed Al-Mutawa highlighted that recent updates to local and international officiating regulations require practice and application to ensure referees perform at the highest level on the court.

By Khaled Al-Enezi

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff