TEHRAN – Iran’s women's handball senior team coach, Khadijeh Ghane, lauded the junior team's qualification for the IHF World Championships, labeling it a "unique achievement".

Iran claimed fifth place in the 2023 Asian Women's Junior Handball Championship by defeating Kazakhstan 27-24 on Saturday.

The top five teams secured their place in the 24th IHF Women’s Junior Handball World Championship to be held in North Macedonia, from June 19 to 30, 2024.

“The players, technical staff and all Iranian women deserve congratulations for this success,” said Ghane in his exclusive interview with Tehran Times.

“Our girls' second consecutive qualification for the World Championships highlights the abilities of Iranian women in sports, particularly handball,” she added.

“Due to the short break between the league and national team's training camps, the physical state of Iran's junior team was not optimal and we were concerned about it.

“In addition, the Iran Handball Federation's financial limitations prevented the team for arranging any preparatory games before the 2023 Asian Women's Junior Handball Championship.

“The technical staff of the junior team managed to overcome obstacles and led the team to their second consecutive qualification for the World Championships, marking a unique achievement,” Ghane said.

During the competition in Hong Kong, the Iranian team suffered losses to China and Chinese Taipei but managed to beat Uzbekistan, India, Hong Kong, and Kazakhstan.

Ghane, who has worked with many of the current junior team players, described them as a golden generation.

“The current Iranian junior handball team is a golden generation that needs more support leading up to the World Championships. They can make history at the championships if the federation arrange friendly matches against stronger teams and training camps in other countries,” she concluded.