Three of the four preliminary round group winners in both the junior and the youth categories at the IHF Men's Inter-Continental Trophy crashed out in the semi-finals, as hosts Kosovo and Nigeria made it to the last act of the youth competition, while Rwanda and the United States of America qualified for the final in the junior competition.

After clinching the first place in their group with wins over the USA and Nicaragua, Uzbekistan had no chance to save anything against Nigeria in the semi-finals, being down 24:13 at the break.

It was a mammoth effort from Mustapha Mohammed, who had previously scored 14 goals for Nigeria in the win against New Caledonia, as he finished the match with 17 goals, leading Nigeria to an outstanding 43:29 win, with all but three players scoring at least one goal in the match.

In the second semi-final, hosts Kosovo kept their dreams for the title and the qualification for the 2025 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship alive, after a hard-fought win against the USA, 27:26.

Kosovo led 7:4 early in the match, but went behind in the second half, 14:15, after 35 minutes. They bounced back, opened a four-goal lead, 23:19, and could never be caught by the USA, despite a last-gasp comeback, which cut the lead to a single goal.

Amar Muqolli and Olsi Mulaj each scored nine goals for Kosovo, while Nathaniel Long scored seven goals for the USA.

The winner of the IHF Men's Inter-Continental Trophy in this age category will qualify for the 2025 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship.

In the junior competition, Rwanda were coming into the match with the USA with high hopes, having scored 90 goals in the first two matches. However, they had no chance, converting only 53% of their attacks in a 28:32 loss.

Rwanda started the second half with an excellent display, scoring four unanswered goals, but USA bounced back with their own 4:0 run, which was repeated later in the match. By the 56th minute, USA had a seven-goal lead, 31:24, with Rwanda only managing to cut the gap in the end, 32:28.

Jean Pierre Ndayshimiye and Samuel Mbestusungwe each scored eight goals for Rwanda, while Oskar Trummer had nine goals for the USA.

In the other semi-final, Uzbekistan delivered 41 goals in a high-octane match against Bulgaria, as the European side could not keep up. Uzbekistan led from start to finish, as Umidjon Zokirov had nine goals, clinching a 41:33 win.

The final between USA and Uzbekistan will take place on Sunday, and Uzbekistan will qualify for the 2025 IHF Men’s Junior World Championship if they win, where the USA have already secured their berth.

Credit Photo: Rikard Quni / Kosovo Handball Federation