Egypt’s men’s handball team won the gold medal at the Taranto 2026 Mediterranean Games after completing an impressive unbeaten run and defeating Greece 31-29 in the final in Italy.

Egypt managed to win a difficult final by two goals to reach the top of the podium and add another gold medal to the country’s tally. The team delivered strong performances from its opening game until the final whistle of the tournament.

The achievement carries extra importance because Egypt competed with a squad largely made up of second-team players, young talents and locally based players. Several professionals were unavailable because of their club commitments, as the Mediterranean Games are not part of the international handball calendar.

Perfect winning run

Egypt started the group stage in excellent form and collected maximum points after winning all three matches.

The Pharaohs opened their campaign with an impressive 38-27 victory over Portugal before producing another dominant display to beat Kosovo 42-21.

Egypt then faced host nation Italy in the final group match and claimed a 25-22 victory, completing the first stage with a perfect record.

The winning run continued in the knockout stage. Egypt met Algeria in the semifinal and came through a tight contest with a 27-25 victory.

That result booked Egypt’s place in the gold-medal match against Greece, where the Pharaohs completed their mission with a 31-29 win.

Egypt therefore finished the handball competition with five victories from five matches, beating Portugal, Kosovo, Italy, Algeria and Greece without suffering a single defeat.

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Gold for the future

The importance of the title goes beyond the gold medal. The tournament offered several young and locally based players valuable international experience against different European and Mediterranean handball styles.

The team was led by Spanish coach Fernando Barbeito, an assistant coach with Egypt’s senior national team, who successfully used the available squad to reach the top of the podium.

The strong performances from Egypt’s second-team and younger players could also give the senior coaching staff more options in the future, as the Egyptian Handball Federation continues its plan to expand the pool of players available for major international competitions.

Egypt’s squad included goalkeepers Abdelrahman Hamid, Youssef Nagy and Mostafa Adel. Yasser Seif, Begad Marwan and Ahmed Taghian were among the line players.

Seif Hany and Ziad Hashad were included as playmakers, while the wing options featured Omar Khaled Castillo, Mohamed Emad Oka, Omar Haiman, Mohamed Moamen Safa and Belal Ibrahim Massoud. Nabil Sherif and Mohamed Salah were also included at left back.

Egypt’s handball gold also added to the country’s overall Mediterranean Games medal tally. According to the figures reported in the published coverage, Egypt reached 39 medals, including 13 gold, 13 silver and 13 bronze.

The handball success came alongside other strong Egyptian results. Weightlifter Nour El-Din Zaki won gold in the 65kg snatch after lifting 133kg and also collected silver in the clean and jerk.

With Egyptian athletes still competing across several sports, the handball gold stands out as one of the country’s biggest achievements of the Games. It was not only a championship victory, but also a perfect five-match campaign delivered by a squad containing several players who could become an important part of Egyptian handball’s future.