After the group play just finished, one can conclude that in the end there are no real surprises in this year’s PanAmerican Men’s Championship. In particular, Argentina and Brazil yet again seem quite dominant. They should offer an interesting final, which decides the gold medals and the better seeding for the 2011 World Championship.

As often in the past, the real excitement involves the struggle for the third place, which also carries with it tickets to the World Championship in Sweden. It is now rather obvious that the final fight for those tickets will be between the host country Chile and Cuba. Of course, either one of these teams still has the opportunity to cause a major upset in the semifinals. But until now it really seems that Argentina (against Cuba) and Brazil (against Chile) are much too strong to allow that to happen.

Cuba defeated both Greenland and the Dominican Republic but were completely without a chance against Brazil. An 11-goal half-time deficit had been extended to a 15-goal difference by the end of the game. Argentina was in a class by itself in their group, leaving it to the other three teams to compete for second place. There had been some speculation that the prospects of a solid victory for Uruguay against Canada, combined with a huge loss by Chile against Argentina somehow could offer Uruguay a bit of hope. But Canada put up a good fight and kept the Chilean victory to three goals; and then Argentina smartly took it a bit easy after their group win seemed secure and with two more important games to come, so the victory against Chile was limited to eight goals.

Thursday’s results and the final standings in the preliminary groups:

CAN-URU 29-32 and ARG-CHI 26-18; ARG 6 points, CHI 3 (+3), URU 3 (-15), CAN 0;

CUB-BRA 26-41 and GRL-DOM 25-20; BRA 6 points, CUB 4, GRL 2, DOM 0;

So, again, Friday’s semifinals are Argentina-Cuba and Brazil-Chile, while the placement matches have the pairings Uruguay-Dominican Rep. and then Greenland-Canada for what one might call the ‘North American Championship’.

Brazil, Cuba and Argentina are each 2-0 in Group play and have secured tickets to the Semifinals on Friday. Brazil and Cuba have dominated Group A with both nations beating the Dominican Republic and Greenland. The matches against the Dominican Republic were not close, but Greenland put up a good fight losing by 7 to Cuba and 6 to Greenland. Brazil and Cuba will play for first place in the group tomorrow.

Argentina is clearly the class of Group A with an 18 goal victory over Uruguay and a 27 goal victory against Canada. Chile is currently in 2nd place thanks to a 36-25 victory over Canada on Day 1. On day 2, however Chile and Uruguay played to a 27-27 draw. The total goal differential in tomorrow‘s matches (Chile vs. Argentina) and (Uruguay vs. Canada) will likely decide the outcome. Chile currently has a 29 goal advantage. A large number, but one that could potentially be overcome.

Tournament Results and Standings: http://www.panamhandball.org/index.php?option=com_joomleague&func=showResultsRank&p=14&Itemid=39

It has seemed like a foregone conclusion that Argentina and Brazil would take two of the three slots in the qualifying for the 2011 Men's World Championship. But the struggle for the remaining slot seemed more open. The home team, Chile, seemed to be in the running, and the Dominican Republic with some ex-Cuban reinforcements seemed like an obvious threat. Greenland might be strong enough and Canada might be on its way up again. But the real 'dark horse', like so many times before has been Cuba. The issue here has often been that it has been diificult to predict how strong a team Cuba might be able to mobilize on any given occasion.

Judging from the results on the first day of the event, the answer seems to be that Cuba has brought a team that is young, but athletic and talented enough to be seen as a favorite for the third qualifying slot. After starting out by taking a 10-0 lead, they went on to crush the Dominican Republic by the score of 39-15. However, the opponents were weaker than expected, so the real test may not come until the Cubans confront Brazil on Thursday. Brazil beat Greenland with 29-23 in the other match in the group. In the other group, Argentina lived up to the expectations by easily defeating Uruguay with the score 32-14. Here the home team Chile gave a hint that they want to be a serious candidate in the qualifying, after beating Canada convincingly, 36-25.

It is difficult to see that Cuba will be stopped by Greenland or Chile by Uruguay in the Wednesday matches, so this should mean that, as so often before, the semifinals on Friday will be the key match-ups.

As the hosts for the 2011 Men's World Championships, Sweden obviously does not need to participate in the qualifying process which comes to a conclusion in Europe this weekend. So they are taking the opportunity for some 'team building' and physical training, not somewhere up north in Sweden under the 'midnight sun' but in the unusual handball location of the Bahamas!

The following article sheds some light on the specific choice of a resort in Grand Bahama, as there apparently is a link to Swedish handball, and as the Chair of the Grand Bahama Island Tourist Board has a somewhat Swedish-sounding name. http://www.thenassauguardian.com/sports/82863790633734.php Perhaps other handball teams who seek warmer climates for their gruelling training will find a good location here…

As noted in the article, the Swedish team also wanted to play some matches at the end of their training camp. As the opposition might have been a bit thin in the Bahamas, there are press reports to the effect that matches in Atlanta against the USA national team had been agreed but that this somehow fell through at the last moment. Therefore, the final solution was to move on from Grand Bahama to Puerto Rico where matches will be played during the coming weekend.

The Puerto Rican team did not qualify for next week's PanAmerican Championship in Chile, which also determines the final three slots for the World Championship in Sweden. However, they are preparing for the upcoming Central American and Caribbean Games, the regional event for all Olympic sports that ties in with the Panamerican Games. This event will be hosted precisely by Puerto Rico, so there is a lot of prestige involved in having the Puerto Rican handball team as well prepared as possible. Against this background, the sudden and unexpected proposal for a visit by the Swedish team was very timely.

Puerto Rico has excellent facilities for many different sports in the town of Guaynabo, near the capital, San Juan, as commented in the linked web site: http://www.topuertorico.org/city/guaynabo.shtml In fact, several Panamerican and regional handball events have been organized here in recent years.

It is certainly nice to see that handball countries who normally pursue their progress under very different circumstances find an opportunity to support each other in this way. We hope that this Swedish-Caribbean 'joint venture' will be fruitful for all parties!

This past Friday the draw for Men’s PATHF Elite Championship was held in Chile. The resulting draw features a relativey weak Group A with Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Canada and a strong Group B with Brazil, Cuba, Greenland and the Dominican Republic. Arguably, based on recent results, Group B has 4 of the 5 best teams in PATHF and is a legitimate “Group of Death.”

At first glance this draw result might be a reason to suspect shenanigans with host Chile being given an easy ride to the semifinals. The PATHF procedures, however, suggest it was only a result of mildly good fortune.

Draw Procedures:
The eight teams were grouped into 4 rows based on the results of the 2008 Championship.
Row 1= BRA / ARG (1st and 2nd in 2008)
Row 2= CUB /CHI (3th and 4th)
Row 3= GRL / URU (5th and 6th)
Row 4= DOM / CAN (1st and 2nd, during last First Division PATHF Championship)
Rows 1, 3 and 4 were drawn into groups A and B. Chile as the host was then allowed to choose which Group it preferred.

Brazil and Argentina are the clear favorites and will likely play for the title. The remaining 6 teams in all likelihood will battle for 3rd place and the last ticket to the World Championships in Sweden.

Cuba was 3rd in 2008 and Chile was guaranteed to avoid them since they were on the same row. Greenland (3rd in 2006) and a resurgent Dominican Republic, bolstered by Cuban expats were the teams to avoid. At least one of those teams could be avoided for sure and there was a 50% chance that they would be drawn together, which was the result that occurred.

Chile’s good fortune is equally good fortune for Canada. Both Uruguay and Chile beat them two years ago, but they surely would rather face those nations than either Cuba or Greenland. Regardless, getting to the semifinals is just half the battle. A victory in the 3rd place game will be the key to a World Championship ticket. The 2010 PATHF Men’s Championships will take place from 22-26 June in Chile.

PATHF: Draw Results: http://www.panamhandball.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=85&Itemid=39

The PanAmerican men’s championship will take place in Chile late next month. This event also serves as the qualifying event for the Men’s World Championship in Sweden in January 2011. Three teams from Panamerica will qualify. https://teamhandballnews.com/page30.html

As usual in recent years, it is taken for granted that Argentina and Brazil will grab two of the three slots, so the discussion more involves the bid for the one remaining slot. Here it has been assumed that the home country, Chile, would have a better chance than in the past. But it has also been a matter of speculation, how strong a team would Cuba be able to field. Indeed, after Cuba recently pulled out of the process of qualifying for the Panamerican Games and therefore also the 2012 Olympics, https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.975 some people have wondered if Cuba might withdraw at the last moment also from next month’s event. Then there is also some special interest related to the participation of Greenland. If the IHF leadership gets its wishes, Greenland will soon be relegated to the status of ‘associate IHF member’ and would then lose the right to participate in World Championships, so this just might be the last chance for a while.

Now there are interesting news from several sources, for instances in Chile and Spain, but especially from the Mexican ‘El Foro de Handball.’ http://handball.mforos.com/1179288/9602485-parece-que-se-confirma-dominicana-con-cubanos/#comments It is seen as being close to certain that at least three former top players on the Cuban national team, who have recently played on club teams in Spain and Brazil, have now become eligible to play for the team of the Dominican Republic. They have acquired citizenship and have met the required 3-year waiting period, under IHF regulations, after they last played for Cuba. This would obviously strengthen the Dominican team considerably and make them highly competitive. In fact, there is also speculation that two more ex-Cubans might soon join the Dominican team. There seem to be some doubts as to precisely when their 3-year period expires, so they might not be eligible next month, but would most probably become valuable additions if the Dominican team were to qualify for the World Championship.

So this continues the ‘tradition’ whereby Cuban star players in the past have become integrated as star players on national teams in Europe, for instance in Hungary, Iceland and Spain. This is not just causing losses for Cuban handball in the sense that the players are gone from the team, but it is clearly also impacting the inclination of the Cuban government to sponsor handball teams at the international level. Bringing up players to earn a good living as representatives for [u]other[/u] countries is most certainly not what the Cubans have in mind.

The Pan American Team Handball Federation (PATHF) Junior Women’s Championships took place this past week in Buenos Aires. Argentina beat Brazil for the gold medal 30-26 while the Dominican Republic beat Puerto Rico, 36-26 for the bronze. All four teams, however, qualified for the Junior World Championships this summer in South Korea.

Final Standings
1) Argentina
2) Brazil
3) Dominican Republic
4) Puerto Rico
5) Uruguay
6) Mexico
7) Chile
8 ) Greenland

Commentary: If Puerto Rico can qualify for the Junior World Championship it’s not a stretch to think that the U.S. could have had a decent shot at qualifying for this event too. Not to beat a broken record here, but USA Team Handball is really missing the boat with their all the eggs in the basket focus on the possibility of a North American Handball Federation (NAHF) being approved by the IHF later this month. Certainly, 4 potential members of the NAHF (Greenland, Mexico, Dominican Republic, and Puerto Rico) chose to participate in PATHF qualification events. This would have been a great experience for Under 20 players in the U.S. as evidenced by the atmosphere shown in the youtube video of the final.

PATHF: Junior Women’s Final Results: http://www.panamhandball.org/index.php?option=com_joomleague&func=showPlan&mode=1&p=12&Itemid=29

VIDEO: Youtube of last minutes of Gold Medal match: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5dNGwrtYvy8&feature=player_embedded

THN (26 Nov 09): Another PATHF Tournament in Costa Rica: Where are the Americans?: https://teamhandballnews.com/news.php?item.888

The South American Games Handball competition ends today and Colombian TV is scheduled to broadcast the final 2 games on the internet. At 1500 GMT (or 1100 U.S. East Coast) Colombian plays Chile. A Chile victory will directly qualify that country for the 2011 PANAM Games. A Chile loss will directly qualify Uruguay. At 1700 GMT (or 1300 U.S. East Coast) Argentina plays Brazil. Both teams are undefeated in this round robin competition and the winner will take first place.

The Women’s competition has already been completed and Argentina went undefeated in the round robin competition. Brazil’s only loss was a 22-19 defeat to Argentina. Uruguay secured third place and the direct ticket to the PANAM Games. Chile will play in the 2nd Chance tournament against the loser of USA v Canada and the 4th place finisher in the Central American and Caribbean games later this summer.

WOMEN (Final rankings)
Gold: ARG
Silver: BRA
Bronze: URU
4th: CHI (qualify for requalification competition)
5th: PAR
6th: COL

The South American Games is the first step in the long road to the 2012 Olympics in London for Pan American nations. For details on the Olympic qualification process check the links on the right hand side of the page.

Official Results: http://www.elcolombiano.com/proyectos/juegossuramericanos/index.asp (click on balonman and dates of competition for results and PDFs of match score sheets)
Mexico Forum: http://handball.mforos.com/ (More stories and link to videos)

The Mexico Handball Forum reports that Cuba has decided not to participate in the upcoming Central America and Caribbean Games this summer in Puerto Rico. The Handball tournament at this event serves as a qualifier for the PANAM Games. Unless the Pan American Team Handball Federation (PATHF) alters its qualification format, this will preclude Cuban participation at the PANAM Games. In addition to its status as the preeminent multi-sport event in the American Hemisphere the PANAM Games has also served as the Handball qualifier for the Olympic Games.

At the 2007 PANAM Games, the Cuban women finished 2nd and the Cuban men placed 3rd. Based on those and recent performances Cuba would again have been a contender to medal and challenge Brazil/Argentina for the title.

Cuba identified concerns with visas, landing rights for Cuban aircraft and security assurances that their delegation could avoid "continuing pressures and provocations" as their reasons for not participating. It should also be noted that Puerto Rico’s status as a Commonwealth of the U.S. would have meant that every athlete setting foot in Puerto Rico could immediately apply for asylum which under U.S. law is granted unconditionally to all Cubans.

Editor’s note: We have posted 2012 Olympic qualification pages (see right hand side links) based on the qualification process used for the 2008 games. These pages are projections based on unofficial information and will be updated once the IHF publishes the official qualification guidelines

Mexico Handball Forum (3 Mar 10): Cuba will not participate in the Pan American Games in Guadalajara!: http://handball.mforos.com/1179288/9442619-cuba-no-participara-en-los-juegos-panamericanos-de-guadalajara/

The Brazilian Handball Confederation (CBHb) was founded in 1979 and a Brazilian team participated when the 1st Men's Panamerican Championship was organized the following year. Gradually, Brazil has progressed to become a dominating force in Panamerican handball, albeit with the traditional close rivalry with Argentina, on both the men's and the women's side. But while the gold medals in Panamerican competitions have kept piling up, the real successes in international competition, i.e., World Championships and Olympic Games, have so far failed to materialize. Brazilian players have been sought out by European clubs, but the experience gained in this manner has not been enough.

Therefore, notwithstanding the successes within the continent and the strong growth of handball within Brazil, the Confederation and its leadership has received criticism, also from within in its own ranks. For instance, one of the dominating players on the men's national team recently expressed in public his frustrations with the lack of an international break-through and questioned if the methods of the CBHb were the best ones. http://br.esportes.yahoo.com/china2008/noticias/27012010/82/d-sport-descartar-volta-quadras-folhas-critica.html

Nevertheless, as reported on the CBHB web site http://www.brasilhandebol.com.br/ from the CBHb General Assembly last weekend, Oliveira found himself presented with a petition that urged him, 'for the sake of continuity', to promise to make himself available also for the period 2013-6, leading up to the Olympic Games in Rio. Needless to say, 'an emotional Oliveira was unable to resist this overwhelming pressure'. He had previously indicated that he would leave in 2012 when his current mandate expires.

Oliveira is the third president in the history of the CBHb, having taken over from Jose Maria Teixeira in the late 1980s. In other words, a re-election for 2013-16 would be for his seventh(!) consecutive period as president. Indeed, this fact has caused some Brazilian observers to ask rather sarcastically if the international results of Brazilian handball really justify that Oliveira becomes such a 'record holder'. http://blogdojuca.uol.com.br/2010/03/nosso-recordista-no-handebol/

As followers of international handball know, while Oliveira's heart may be in the handball of his Brazil, he is currently also the President of the PanAmerican Team Handball Federation, and therefore also a Vice-President of the International Handball Federation until 2013.

The Dominican Republic easily defeated Canada yesterday in the gold medal match 35-23 and Puerto Rico edged Mexico 28-26 for 3rd place. In round-robin play Venezuela defeated Guatemala 32-26 to secure 5th place. The Dominican Republic and Canada both qualified for the Men’s PATHF Championship next summer in Chile.

Results: Saturday, 07 November 2009

Placing Matches
Rep. Dominicana – Canada 35 : 23 (17:10)
Puerto Rico – Mexico 28 : 26 (12:13) Group A

5th-7th Place Classification
Venezuela – Guatemala 32 : 26 (11:13)

Final Ranking
1) Dominican Republic
2) Canada
3) Puerto Rico
4) Mexico
5) Venezuela
6) Colombia
7) Guatemala

PATHF website: Results: http://www.panamhandball.org/index.php?option=com_joomleague&func=showPlan&mode=1&p=7&Itemid=19

Yesterday, Toronto easily won the vote to be selected the host city for the 2015 Pan American Games. On the first ballot Toronto received 33 of 52 votes, more than the majority needed for selection. Lima was a distant second with 11 votes and Bogota received 7.

The PANAM Games selection is significant to North and South American Handball nations as historically, the Handball tournament at this competition has also served as the qualifier for the Olympics in the following year. Qualification systems can change, however, and there is also the possibility of a new North American Handball Federation.

And even if the PANAM Games no longer the qualifier for the Olympics it is a major tournament and a good warm up test in an “Olympic” environment. Additionally, for Canada being selected to host the PANAM Games could mean more National funding for their cash strapped program.

For some background on the voting process and analysis on how Toronto won the bid check out the following articles:

The Star: Mexican millionaire key on Pan Am vote day: http://www.thestar.com/sports/panamgames/article/722018–mexican-millionaire-key-on-pan-am-vote-day?bn=1
National Post: How Toronto Won the Pan Am Games: http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/toronto/archive/2009/11/07/how-toronto-won-the-games.aspx

Canada built a big half-time lead of 19-12 and then held off Puerto Rico for a 29-27 victory. In the other semifinal, the Dominican Republic beat Mexico 35-32. The wins qualified both Canada and the Dominican Republic for the Men’s PATHF Championships this summer in Chile. Those two team will also play for Gold tomorrow, while Mexico and Puerto Rico square off for 3rd place.

Editor's Note: The Mexico Handball Forum found the somewhat hidden links to the Match Reports and has created a handy summary page: http://handball.mforos.com/1179288/9113940-panamericano-de-1-div-en-dom-resultados-planillas-comentarios/ Geoffrye Collete was the big scorer for Canada yesterday with 10 goals. Simon Bronsard added 6 and Mark Walder added 5.

Results: Friday, 06 November 2009

Semi-finales
Canada – Puerto Rico 29 : 27 (19:12)
Rep. Dominicana – Mexico 35 : 32 (19:16) Group A

5th-7th Place Classification
Guatemala – Colombia 19 : 30 (10:16)
PATHF website: Results: http://www.panamhandball.org/index.php?option=com_joomleague&func=showPlan&mode=1&p=7&Itemid=19