The Rwanda National Police RNP (RNP) Handball club left on Friday to Kenya to participate in the annual East and Central Africa Handball Federation (ECAHF) Club championship.
The 2023 tournament for senior clubs is slated to run from 2-9 December, at Nyayo National Stadium in Nairobi.
Prior to their departure, the team was briefed by the Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIGP) in charge of Administration and Personnel, Jeanne Chantal Ujeneza, who urged them to “maintain the winning spirit” as good Rwandan ambassadors.
Nine teams from Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, South Sudan and Burundi confirmed their participation in the annual tournament.
The other teams in the men’s category include Gicumbi from Rwanda; UPDF (Uganda), Juba City (South Sudan), and five teams from Kenya, namely; NCPB, Black Mamba, General Service Unit (GSU), Equity Bank, and KDF HC.
Six teams in the women category also confirmed their participation in the regional tournament. They include Nairobi Water, NCPB and KDF from the host Kenya, Nkajja from Uganda, JKT from Tanzania and Juba City of South Sudan.
Police HC head coach, CIP (rtd) Antoine Ntabanganyima, said that the team had prior training and other related preparations to guide them to a successful competition.
“All players are available and in good health, we had two weeks of training and the institution gave us all the requirements. The ball is now in our hands to make our country proud once again,” said Ntabanganyima.
He added: “We have a well balanced team that includes 13 national team players in both senior and U-18 teams.”
Police HC has won the ECAHF club championships four times, with the latest being the 2021 edition held in Tanzania. (End)