East and Central Africa Handball Championships champions Nairobi Water Queens and Black Mamba will represent Kenya at this year's edition of the regional show slated for December 2 to 8 in Kigali, Rwanda.
Black Mamba may be joined by 14-time holders National Cereals and Produce Board (NCPB) alongside their female counterparts, who have won the tournament twice.
NCPB's assistant team manager, Ednah Kasandi remained hopeful that their employer will give them the nod to take their title reclamations campaign to Kigali.
Nairobi Water head coach Jack Ochieng said his charges are in good shape and upbeat to retain the trophy.
"We are going for the title once again. Our league fixtures have helped us in preparations. All players in the travelling squad are not new to these competitions so I am positive we will defend the title," said Ochieng.
Black Mamba coach Martin Abunde intimated that they are going for the title this time round after being perennial finalists in several editions including in 2018.
“Lifting the title has been a daunting task for my team in the past editions where we have always finished in the medal bracket but the gold has remained elusive," said Abunde, who recently guided the women's national roll ball team to winning the World Cup in India.
"We are as good as those teams who have won the championships but we hope to make our chances count this time round.”
East and Central Africa region secretary-general Charles Omondi confirmed that four-time winners Kenya Defence Forces' Ulinzi and Strathmore University men's teams will not participate in the showpiece.
Democratic Republic of Congo's Police will seek to defend their title as they target a fifth crown.
