| Rafael Capote | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Capote in 2016 | |||
| Personal information | |||
| Full name | Rafael da Costa Capote | ||
| Born | 5 October 1987 Havana, Cuba | ||
| Nationality | Cuban/Qatari | ||
| Height | 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) | ||
| Playing position | Left back | ||
| Club information | |||
| Current club | Al-Duhail | ||
| Number | 9 | ||
| Senior clubs | |||
| Years | Team | ||
2007–2009 | Pallamano Conversano | ||
2009–2011 | BM Ciudad Encantada | ||
2011–2013 | CB Ciudad de Logroño | ||
2013–2018 | El Jaish | ||
2018– | Al-Duhail | ||
| National team | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2014- | Qatar | 67 | (269) |
Rafael Da Costa Capote (born 5 October 1987) is a Cuban-born Qatari handball player for Al-Duhail and the Qatari national team. [1] [2] [3] [4]
He was part of the Qatar team that won silver medals at the 2015 World Championship in Qatar, the first World Championship medal for both Qatar and for any Asian team. [5] The result was however controversial due to the many naturalized players of Qatar, of which Capote was one of them. [6] [7] According to the Frankfurter Allgemeine , only four of the 17 players in the squad were native to Qatar. [8] The practice was criticised by Austrian goalkeeper after his team's loss to Qatar in the round of 16, saying "It [felt] like playing against a world selection team" and "I think it is not the sense of a world championship." [9] Furthermore there were claims of favourable refereering for the hosts. [10] [11] [12] After the final whistle of their semifinal against Poland, the Polish players showed their discontent by ironically applauding the three referees. [13] [14]
