Asian Beach Games 2026: Maldives Beach Handball Team Shows Strong Fight Against Oman and Thailand

At the ongoing 6th Asian Beach Games in Sanya, China, the Maldives men’s beach handball team delivered determined performances in today’s matches against two of the strongest teams in the group, Oman and Thailand.

Beach handball is one of the opening events of the Games, with Maldives competing in Group B alongside Oman, Pakistan, Jordan, Bangladesh, Thailand, Qatar, and Mongolia.

Maldives entered today’s fixtures with confidence, having already secured victories over Bangladesh and Mongolia earlier in the group stage, both through closely contested penalty shootouts.

In their first match of the day, Maldives faced Oman, one of Asia’s top beach handball teams. Oman secured the win in two sets, taking the first set 22–10. However, Maldives responded strongly in the second set, reducing the scoring gap and even leveling the score at several points, including 10–10 midway through the set. Oman eventually closed the set 16–12.

Fathuhulla Adam and team captain Shamnooz Mohamed Naeem were standout performers in the match, each contributing 8 goals.

Later in the day, Maldives faced Thailand, who had remained unbeaten in the tournament up to that point. Thailand won the match 2–0, but Maldives showed resilience and fighting spirit throughout.

Thailand took the first set 22–12, while Maldives delivered an improved performance in the second set, narrowing the margin before Thailand secured it 18–12.

Fathuhulla Adam continued his strong form, scoring 10 goals in the match, while captain Shamnooz Mohamed Naeem added 8 goals.

Despite the results, Maldives demonstrated consistent improvement and competitive spirit against higher-ranked opponents, gaining valuable experience as the tournament progresses.