Kuwait Club players celebrate after winning the Federation Championship.

KUWAIT CITY, Nov 1: Kuwait is set to kick off its preparations ahead of the first-ever Arab Challenge Cup for Men, scheduled in Amman, Jordan, from November 26 to December 8. Training sessions will be held at the Volleyball Federation Hall in the Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Sports Complex.

Dr. Jaber Al-Murray, President of the Kuwait Volleyball Federation, confirmed that the tournament will feature national teams from Kuwait, Egypt, Bahrain, Tunisia, Oman, Iraq, Libya, and the host nation Jordan.

He added that following the Arab Challenge Cup, the league will commence on December 11, featuring nine clubs: Kuwait, Qadsia, Kazma, Al-Arabi, Burgan, Al-Shabab, Al-Sulaibikhat, Al-Nasr, and Al-Yarmouk, in a single round-robin format.

Assistant coach Zaid Al-Kazemi explained that under Argentinian head coach Julian, the team’s month-long training program will include two main phases: domestic training in Kuwait and an overseas training camp featuring friendly matches. The camp’s location and duration will be finalized after approval from the Public Authority for Sport.

Al-Kazemi emphasized that participation in the Arab Challenge Cup aligns with the federation’s long-term strategy to develop the national team, providing critical exposure against top Arab teams with rich experience in regional and international competitions. He noted this approach will raise the technical level of the players and lay the groundwork for future international successes.

The preliminary squad includes: Adhbi Al-Anzi, Abdullah Bouftain, Omar Al-Anzi, Nawaf Al-Sanea, Mohammed Al-Dhafiri, Ibrahim Safar, Abdullah Al-Mouainah, Abdulnasser Al-Anzi, Fares Siraj, Bader Al-Attar, Rashid Anbar, Ahmed Al-Munees, Nasser Dashti, Abdullah Al-Anzi, Youssef Mandel, Talal Abdulrazzaq, Abdulrahman Al-Mulla, Fahad Saad Yaqoub, Hassan Al-Qattan, Abdulrahman Al-Mutawa, and Saud Al-Dweisan.

In domestic volleyball action, Kuwait Club clinched the Federation Championship title last Thursday after a thrilling 3-2 victory over Qadsia in the final, with Kazma securing third place following a 3-0 win against Burgan. The winners were crowned by Dr. Jaber Al-Murray and Kuwait Club President Khaled Al-Ghanem.

By Khaled Al Enezi

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff