Rwanda made a powerful start to its IHF Trophy Zone 5 campaign in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, after registering convincing victories over Tanzania in both the U18 and U20 boys’ categories on Monday, 4 May 2026.
The regional championship features five countries Rwanda, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia (hosts), and Djibouti competing in a round-robin group format where each team plays all others in their group before advancing to the knockout stage.
In the U18 category, Rwanda immediately asserted its dominance, going into halftime with a commanding 22–11 lead.
The Rwandan side maintained its intensity after the break, adding 30 more goals while conceding 13, to seal a comprehensive 52–24 victory.
The U20 team followed with another impressive performance against the same opponent.
Rwanda led 20–10 at halftime and continued to control proceedings in the second half, scoring 26 goals while Tanzania managed nine.
The match ended 46–19 in favour of Rwanda. According to the tournament schedule, Rwanda’s campaign continues on Tuesday, 5 May, with both U18 and U20 teams facing Djibouti at 2:00 PM Rwanda time.
The group stage will conclude on Wednesday, 6 May, when the U18 team takes on Kenya, while the U20 side faces hosts Ethiopia.
With the format allowing only the strongest teams from each group to progress to the semi-finals, Rwanda will be aiming to maintain its winning momentum as the competition intensifies in the coming days.
