JEDDAH, 21 February 2008 — Saudi handball national team went down to their first defeat against South Korea 30-31 yesterday in the 13th Asian Handball Championship in Asfahan, Iran. The top three winners in this competition will qualify for the 2009 Handball World Cup finals to be held in Croatia. The Saudis beat Qatar 31-28 in their second game on Tuesday after they drew against Japan 28-28 in their opening match. South Korea lead Group B with two wins against UAE 36-27 and Japan 33-25, followed by the Kingdom team. The Saudis play UAE tomorrow at 3 p.m.
GCC Gymnastics Championship
JEDDAH — Saudi national gymnastics team returned from the 6th GCC Gymnastics Championship in Doha, Qatar with 4 gold, 9 silver and 4 bronze medals. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and host Qatar saw action in the competition that included events for both under 12 and under 16. According to the Saudi Arabian Gymnastics Federation Secretary-General Ibrahim Al-Suair, the next championship will be held Aug. 25 to 28 in Kuwait. He said members of the organizing committee are to visit UAE and Oman to encourage them to participate.
18th Round in Saudi Super League
JEDDAH — The 18th round of the Saudi Football Premier League will take place tomorrow with six matches on tap. Al-Ittihad face Al-Ittifaq in Dammam, Al-Qadisia play Al-Hilal in Riyadh, Al-Hazm meet Al-Shabab in Al-Arass, Al-Wehda face Al-Nasr in Makkah. In Tabuk, Najran and Al-Watani do battle, while in Jeddah Al-Ahli take on Al-Taie. Ittihad lead the league with 43 points from 18 games. Hilal are in second place with 38 points from 16 games followed by Shabab in third position with 32 from 16 matches, and Al-Nasr in fourth with 28 points from 16 matches.
