Andreas Hertelt (on the right) with USA Men’s Head Coach, Robert Hedin (Photo: Markus Hausdorf)
Andreas Hertelt played 13 seasons in the German Bundesliga and represented his country in 10 international games. He has been a Team Leader for the U.S. Men’s National Team and he has been facilitating the placement of U.S. players with European clubs. On the podcast we discuss this program which is financially supported by the Forum Club Handball (FCH) and the U.S. players currently participating in it.
Don’t miss an episode: – Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link – Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link
And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link
The death of George Floyd in Minnesota and the Black Lives Matter protests that have taken place all over the U.S., and even around the world have brought the issue of racial discrimination against African Americans in the U.S. to the forefront.
While for the most part overt racism has been practically nonexistent in USA Team Handball circles underneath the surface there have been issues at play that have likely kept African American participation numbers down.
Joining me to discuss this issue and more are 1996 Olympian, Derek Brown, former North Carolina coach and U.S. Jr National Team Asst Coach, Myles Bacon and NYAC/National Team player and USA Team Handball New York City Ambassador, Divine Jackson.
Here is some background information for some of the items that are discussed in the podcast:
USA Team Handball Diversity & Inclusion Data for Total Membership
USA Team Handball Diversity & Inclusion Data for National Team Athletes
Excerpt from USA Team Handball Newsletter (8 Jun 2020)
Link to the recent USA Team Handball Newsletter: Link
USA Team Handball’s Current Diversity & Inclusion Plan: Link (Note this plan was actually approved in 2017 and called for the formation of a Diversity & Inclusion Committee back then. It would seem that recent events have provided an impetus for getting this work started.)
Don’t miss an episode: – Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link – Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link
And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link
Charlie White: Ultimate Tag winner and USA Beach Handball Athlete
Earlier this week, Charlie White, won the Men’s competition on the premiere episode of Fox TV’s, Ultimate Tag. He joins the podcast to talk about that experience, how he got started with beach handball, how he and his teammates are coping with the COVID-19 pandemic and since he’s a game developer, whether handball will ever get a cool video game.
Ulimate Tag can be seen Wednesday’s on Fox and past episodes (including Charlie’s win) can be seen on Hulu or FoxNow.
Video
Charlie getting caught in the dome competition: Link
Don’t miss an episode: – Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link – Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link
And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link
<< Sponsors: Would you like to get the word out on your handball related product? Contact (john.ryan@teamhandballnews.com) for information on how you can sponsor the podcast. >>
As envisioned, this new competition would be similar in format to cup tournaments that are played in Europe and would be open to club teams from Canada and the U.S. that border the Great Lakes.
The discussion then segued to a broader discussion on handball competition in the U.S. and whether it might be time for some reform. Topics and questions addressed include:
The “weekend tournament”: Is it detrimental to handball’s growth in the U.S.?
Should steps be taken to encourage the splitting of clubs to foster more local competition? What combination of carrots and sticks could be used to facilitate that happening? Should club rosters have limitations on non U.S. citizens?
Should steps be taken to encourage league play over weekend tournaments?
Should the U.S. National Championship transition to a cup style tournament with a Final Four?
What can be done from an entrepreneurial stand point to encourage handball growth? Can handball copy the club growth of Volleyball? What about the opportunity of becoming a pro handball player as a selling point?
Should club rosters have tighter controls to prevent the perception/reality of mercenary players?
The challenges of starting a new club. Would the Detroit and Milwaukee clubs survive the “hit by a bus” question?
Also, at around 12:40 we get into a tangential discussion on the status of the 2020 National Championships originally scheduled for Detroit this May. Could the Championships be rescheduled for this summer? Assuming safety concerns can be met, could the championships even draw national attention thanks to an uncrowded sports calendar?
Don’t miss an episode: – Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link – Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link
And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link
Ross Miner was recently hired by USA Team Handball to be their Chicago area ambassador. As an ambassador he will be responsible for developing youth and college handball in the Chicago are.
In this podcast from 2016, Ross and I discussed Illinois St winning the Buckeye Classic and his handball journey from discovering the sport on TV during the 2008 Olympics to starting the club program at Illinois St and attending the Aarhus Academy in Denmark.
We also discussed the state of the college game and whether the weekend tournament format should be scrapped in favor of league play.
Original Post: Link Podcast on the Aarhus Academy: Link The college handball club graveyard: Link
Don’t miss an episode: – Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link – Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link
And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link
Former NFL Player and newly converted handball fan, Gary Barnidge.
Earlier this month when the Coronavirus was just some issue China was dealing with a group of American NFL players (current and former) had a joint training session with Hungarian Club, FTC Budapest. Video of the match went viral as it seemed to provide what every handball fan wanted after the infamous, Jay Cutler, interview on Pardon My Take: Namely, a match between cocky, over confident NFL players and experienced handball players.
The reality, however, was significantly different. The NFL Players were part of the American Football Without Barriers, a non-profit group that uses sports as a tool to help disadvantaged children live healthy and fit lifestyles through the core values of physical fitness, wellness, and education. And, as the name implies part of that mission is conducting camps and spreading the gospel of American Football in places like Hungary.
Gary Barnidge, played eight seasons as a Tight End for the Carolina Panthers and Cleveland Browns and is one of the founding members of American Football Without Barriers. He joins the podcast to discuss their trip to Hungary, the growing popularity of American Football and what handball might learn from it, and, of course, their handball training with FTC Budapest.
What’s clear: Handball is harder than it looks and the sport has picked up some new and genuine fans from American Football.
Complete video of the entire training session: Link Shorter video with match footage: Link
Don’t miss an episode: – Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link – Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link
And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link
The podcast was sponsored by Aspire Products, EMST150 Training Device. Check it out and don’t forget to use the promo code THN30 for a 30% discount.
During this past weekend’s Air Force Invitational I conducted several interviews and they are all featured on the latest podcast for download.
Interview 1) William Kennedy of Texas A&M and Moshe Mukori of Concordia College talk about playing for Dallas THC at this tournament and their efforts with their respective college programs. – Video: Link – Subscribe to the Team Handball News YouTube channel: Link (so, you don’t miss videos like the exciting end to the Championship Match: Link)
Interview 2) North Carolina’s Alex Laws discusses the Air Force – North Carolina match, the current state of collegiate handball and the challenges of recruiting athletes for the collegiate game. I also ask him a variation of the Jay Cutler challenge: Could a select group of UNC football and basketball players beat the Carolina Handball team?
Interview 3) Tournament MVP, Air Force Nate Luther after the Championship game, Air Force’s defense strategy and his evolution as a player over four years. And, also whether a group of AF football and basketball players could beat the AF Handball team
Interview 4) Air Force coach, Mike Cavanaugh, reflects on the tournament, the waning days of stickum, some of the challenges with roster integrity and the last time Air Force beat West Point. (Note: I was a bit confused regarding Air Force’s planned trip to the Netherlands over Spring Break; Their spring break is a different week from Ohio State, so it’s a separate trip.)
Don’t miss an episode: – Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes: Link – Or use this RSS Feed to sign up for the podcast in your favorite podcast aggregator: Link
And, be sure to check out the podcast archive with interviews and great handball discussion going all the way back to 2006: Link
The podcast was sponsored by Aspire Products, EMST150 Training Device. Check it out and don’t forget to use the promo code THN30 for a 30% discount.
Captain America, Drew Donlin, playing for Leon Ademar vs FC Barcelona
It’s been quite the ride for Team USA’s Drew Donlin, from Minnesota to the Air Force Academy to Los Angeles to Germany and now Spain.
In September 2018 he was an alternate and a last minute call up for the U.S. National Team for the PANAM Games Qualification series vs Canada. Just 14 months later he found himself playing important minutes for his club, Leon Ademar, against FC Barcelona. Such a rapid rise is unprecedented for just about any handball player, let alone a U.S. National Team player who was born and raised in the U.S. and didn’t start playing the sport until he was 18.
On the podcast we discuss his handball origin story, USA Beach Handball competitions and how exactly he went from a national team alternate to playing against Barca in 14 months.
Player Profile Pages – Leon Ademar: Link – Liga ASOBAL (with current stats): Link – EHF: Link – USA Team Handball: Link
Drew Donlin Social Media – Facebook: Link – Instagram: Link
Army’s Jeremy Spencer collides with the Air Force defense last night at the Air Force Academy.
USA Team Handball’s oldest rivalry match took place last night at the Air Force Academy with Army (West Point) coming away with a 40-28 victory.
The first half started slowly with both teams initially having trouble scoring in their set offenses. Air Force took their sole lead of the match (3-2) after 8 minutes of play, but Army scored 2 goals in quick succession to retake the lead. Air Force managed to stay with 1-2 goals for another 10 minutes, but the end of the half saw Army pull away for an 18-13 halftime score.
To start the 2nd half, Army used an aggressive 5-1 defense and point man Mike Turner rattled the Air Force causing several turnovers. The extra pressure resulted in a 5-0 goal blitz in just 3 minutes to open up a 23-13 lead. From then on the teams traded goals for the rest of the way with Air Force never managing to come closer in 10 goals.
Kendrick Thomas who led all scorers with 9 goals was pleased with Army’s performance, emphasizing that it was a big game for Army and that he hadn’t lost to Air Force and wanted to keep that tradition going.
Air Force, goalie and team captain, Austin Faulkner, was disappointed with the loss, noting the team seemed a bit tired from last weekend’s tournament in Chicago. And, that the 12 goal loss was a bit of a let down since they had actually played teams like NYAC and a club team from Minsk.
Both teams are gearing up for the season and a rematch at College Nationals is more than likely. For more on the match and Army and Air Force’s upcoming season click on the podcast link for the complete interviews with Army’s Kendrick Thomas and Air Force’s Austin Faulkner.
Scoring (Army): 40 Kendrick Thomas 9 Trey Neville 6 Ryan Thistlewood 4 Will Considine 5 Nathan Chillian 4 Mike Turner 4 Luke Windish 3 Rob Purdy 3 Matt Allgor 2
Scoring (Air Force): 28 Nathan Luther 5 Quentin Riddle 4 Mark Simpson 3 Grant Gardiner 3 Jackson Cole 3 Rich Vaughn 2 Will Walker 2 Bryan Brown 2 Kyle Grushtka 2 Tevon Miller 1 Emari Hill 1
USA Goalkeeper, Eric Finch, before a friendly match in Germany.
Team USA’s Eric Finch joins the podcast. We discuss his handball origin story, transitioning to beach handball, the residency program at Auburn, the collegiate game and how the U.S. might better train and develop athletes in the future.
Some big questions we discuss include:
Can a recruit brand new to handball make our current men’s team? How good of an athlete would it take? How long would it take?
Should the Men’s program target 18-19 year old’s or 22-23 year old’s?
Should the timeline focus for development be the 2024 or 2028 Olympiad?
Should the collegiate game focus on just one geographical area?
Does it make sense to have a different strategy for the Women’s National Team?
Links to some of the things mentioned in the podcast:
Interview with USA National Team player Ty Reed (now training with Flensburg in Germany): Link
Bill Bigham at the 2016 Beach World Championships opening ceremony in Budapest (Photo courtesy of Santiago Russo, Play Handball)
Bill Bigham has played a big role in the development of beach handball the past few years in California, but his involvement in the sport goes farther back to his days at the University of North Carolina and later as a member of the U.S. Men’s Team at the 2001 World Championships in France. In the podcast we discuss his handball journey, his new role as the beach representative on USA Team Handball’s Board of Directors and how beach handball should be viewed as a future revenue earner instead of another bill to pay.
