Beach Handball has gained momentum attracting 20 teams across the country for the League’s Playoffs played on Sunday 27th at Nyali Beach, Mombasa.
Both divisions have been fiercely competitive since the season began in October 2021, and the playoffs were no different as the country is gearing up to participate in the 2022 Africa Junior and Senior Championships.
“Our league attracted people from all over the country. The country is starting to embrace the sport. Seeing the venue packed to capacity is encouraging. We plan to train more coaches because we expect to have more teams participating in the next league season,” said Titus Kesekwa who is a coach and the technical director of Kenya Beach Handball.
Titus Kesekwa, the beach handball national team coach also serves in the CAVB beach handball working group and is optimistic that Kenya will compete at the world championships.
He added that “It is our dream to compete in the world championship now that the International Handball Federation has released the dates. We would also like to thank NOC-K for supporting the development of handball in the country, through the ongoing Development of National Sports System project”.
The Handball Federation looks to develop beach handball in the country and one of the ways to achieve this was through the creation of the just concluded league. Consequently, the federation plans to use the league as a way of preparing the national team for upcoming events.
The games have not only given local players the chance to showcase their talents, but also attracted new fans to the sport.
“It’s exciting to see the level of interest people are developing in beach handball, it would be great to see more countries in Africa taking part in the sport,” mentioned Titus.
The men’s event was a highly contested final between Saints of Mombasa and Pwani University, a match in which Saints emerged victorious while the women’s one showed an equal measure of toughness. The Coast Queens beat Glorious Queens in a match that was decided through a shootout.
Kenya is now focused on participating in the upcoming world championships which will be held from 21st – 26th June in Crete, Greece, and the African Championships which will be held from the 8th to 12th of April 2022 in Togo.
Results – Finals
Saints Mombasa 2 vs Pwani university 0 (22-21) (23-11)
Coast Queens 2 vs Glorious Queens 1 (20-15) (19-9)