Kigali: The senior men's national handball team from Angola is set to compete in the 27th Edition of the Men's African Cup in Kigali, Rwanda, starting this Wednesday. The team enters the tournament with a history of three bronze medals in previous editions.

According to Angola Press News Agency, Angola's national team has participated in the continent's premier handball event 19 times since their debut in 1979. Their best performances have resulted in three bronze medals. The first bronze medal was achieved in 2004 in Egypt under Bulgarian coach Nikolai Pirgov, following a narrow victory over Algeria with a score of 31-30.

In 2016, again in Egypt, the team, led by coach Filipe Cruz, secured another bronze by defeating Algeria 25-19. Two years later, in the 2018 Africa Cup of Nations hosted by Gabon, Angola clinched their third bronze medal, overcoming Morocco 29-26, once more with Filipe Cruz at the helm.

Angola's initial participation in the competition was in 1979 in the Republic of Congo, where they finished in 9th place. The team then achieved consecutive 5th place finishes in the 1981, 1983, 1985, and 1987 editions held in Tunisia, Egypt, Angola, and Morocco, respectively. However, the team's performance dropped to 7th place in the 1989 edition in Algeria.

After a hiatus due to administrative reasons, Angola returned to the competition in 1996 in Benin, finishing in 9th place, and in 1998 in South Africa, where they ranked 8th. Financial and organizational challenges led to their non-participation in the 2000 edition in Algeria.

Following their bronze medal achievement in 2004, the team placed 4th in the 2006 and 2008 tournaments held in Tunisia and Luanda. Subsequent performances saw Angola attaining 5th place in 2010 in Egypt, 6th in 2012 in Morocco, and 4th place finishes in the 2014 and 2020 tournaments in Algeria and Tunisia, respectively.

In more recent competitions hosted by Egypt in 2022 and 2024, the Angolan team finished in 8th place. As the team gears up for the current edition in Kigali, they aim to improve upon their past performances and seek a higher position on the podium.