The National Sports Council (NSC) has commended the Tanzania Handball Federation (THF) for its efforts in organising and coordinating the Africa Zone Five Women’s Handball Championship, which concluded yesterday at the Filbert Bayi grounds in Kibaha, Coast Region.
Uganda were crowned champions after edging Kenya 29-28 in a closely contested final to secure the regional title.
Kenya finished runners-up, while Rwanda claimed third place and Tanzania settled for fourth after losing 32-31 to Rwanda in the third-place playoff.
Speaking during the closing ceremony, NSC Senior Sports Officer Charles Maguzu said the championship was important in determining the team that would represent Zone Five in the next stage of the African competition.
He also praised the participation of more than six countries, describing it as a positive sign of the growing popularity and development of handball across the region.
Maguzu said the competition went beyond identifying regional representatives, providing an opportunity to discover and nurture talent while strengthening unity, cooperation and friendship among East African countries.
He acknowledged Tanzania’s defeat against Rwanda, saying the team had accepted the result and would use the experience to prepare better for future competitions.
"Although we played against our colleagues from Rwanda for third place and lost, we have accepted the result. A true competitor must also know how to accept defeat. We look forward to meeting again in future competitions," he said.
Meanwhile, Tanzania head coach Rashid Salum described the championship as a valuable learning experience, noting that it was the first time most of his young players had participated in a competition of such magnitude.
He said the players were still developing and needed more time to gain experience, adding that physical fitness challenges affected their performance during some stages of the matches.
Salum said the tournament had exposed the team to changes in modern handball, particularly defensive strategies, playing speed and the use of handball resin to improve ball handling.
He stressed the need for consistent training programmes to improve the players’ physical fitness, technical abilities and competitiveness at international level.
The coach also pointed out that some competing countries regularly send their players to training camps in Europe, Egypt and Tunisia, giving them an advantage in terms of exposure and preparation.
He said Tanzania should consider adopting a similar approach by organising international training camps to help its players gain experience and compete more effectively in future regional and continental tournaments.
The championship provided Tanzania’s young players with an important opportunity to assess their strengths and weaknesses while gaining valuable experience against some of the region’s strongest teams.