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The handball season is winding down and there’s not much happening mid-week except for the good ol’ French LIDL StarLigue with a key match for a club to avoid relegation.
While living in France from 2002-2007 it was a bit annoying to see Montpellier win everything. But, there were a few club sides that would give them a battle and one of those clubs was U.S. Ivry. And, I’ll never forget the 2006-07 season where Ivry led by a young (just 22) and very talented Right Wing/Right Back named Luc Abalo pipped Montpellier for the title. I pity relative newcomers to the sport that think Abalo is just a pretty good wing. You should have seen him play that season where he scored from everywhere and willed Ivry to a title. Yes, he played quite a bit at backcourt and I’ve never seen an undersized back court player dominate the way he did that season.
Unfortunately, thing have gone downhill for Ivry since they won that title. A proud franchise located in the Paris suburbs, that 2006-2007 title was the last of 8 they’ve won (only Montpellier has won more French titles). Since that high water mark they’ve not contended for a title and they even got relegated to the 2nd division for the 2014-15 season, for the first time since 1957. They immediately popped back up to the 1st division, but it’s been a constant fight to stay there.
They now have 2 make up matches left to play and they need to get 3 points to pass Cesson-Rennes and avoid relegation. First up is the tougher of the two tests, a match against 7th place Toulouse on Wednesday. On Saturday, they have and easier task vs 13th place Creteil. Can they do it? It’s possible. In their last match they upset 6th place Chambery.
It may not be the Champions League Final Four, but for the players involved it’s pretty important and therefore handball worth checking out.
Gauthier Mvumbi, Detroit Handball Club Ambassador… Shaquille O’Neal, American Handball Ambassador At-Large?
Gauthier Mvumbi, Detroit Handball Ambassador
During the 2021 World Championships this past January, Gauthier Mvumbi of the Democratic Republic of the Congo was a media sensation and was christened the “Shaq of Handball”. This got the attention of Shaquille O’Neal and he even reached out to Mvumbi via Instagram. For a while Mvumbi was the darling of the handball media world, but I figured his 15 minutes was going to be up pretty soon.
Then a few weeks ago, Detroit Handball announced on social media that Mvumbi had agreed to be a handball ambassador for the club. I greeted this announcement with skepticism and, in part, it directly led to a recent podcast discussion on social media with Detroit Handball Club President, Joey Williams. During the podcast, I tried to get a straight answer as to just what this “ambassadorship” entailed, and from my perspective I never really got a satisfactory answer. Being somewhat old school, I wrote the whole thing off as pretty much attention for attention’s sake.
The Two Shaqs are Still Talking
But, then I read that the two Shaqs have continued their friendship and according to a recent interview in the French newspaper, L’Echo Republicaine, they are still in contact with each other. Further, Shaquille O’Neal apparently has some interesting in helping out handball in the U.S.
Here’s a translation of a portion of the interview
Gauthier Mvumbi, you will become the ambassador of US handball. Explain to us! I will help promote handball in the United States, help its development. I will participate in internships, summer camps, gala matches. I will go back and forth, but I remain above all a handball player in France or in Europe.
In which big American city? The Detroit club contacted me. In the near future, Shaquille O’Neal also wants to be involved and take on some responsibilities. Shaq would like to explore possibilities to help make handball more attractive in the U.S.; With a 5 year time frame.
Are you still in touch with the NBA star? We talk to each other regularly. The plan is to go to the U.S. in July and meet each other in person. That will be something!
Shaquille O’Neal as a Handball Ambassador?
Shaq wants to help make handball more attractive in the U.S.? Wow! It true, that would be a godsend of epic proportions. A few years ago I highlighted what USA Team Handball should look for in terms of new Board Members. I identified a need for millionaires (or even better, billionaires) and handball gospel spreaders, who could help educate the U.S. Shaq would be both in one package.
Shaq made a small fortune as an athlete ($292M on salary alone) and he continues to add to that fortune as a pretty effective ad pitchman for a number of different products. He’s got a fair amount of cash that could be put to good use. With the USA Team Handball budget at around $500K he could effectively buy out the organization if he wanted to.
But, where he would really shine is as a handball pitchman. He has millions of followers on social media and one Tweet or IG post from his Shaqness would effectively reach more new fans and players than a year’s worth of carefully crafted social media campaigns from various handball outlets in the U.S. and world-wide.
How Shaq Could Help Handball in the U.S.
Shaq as an ambassador and proponent for the sport could be an epic game changer in so many ways. Here are just a few ways he could help out:
Athlete recruiter: With a few targeted social media posts Shaq could reach hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of potential new handball athletes at all levels. Which, of course, would be really cool, but hopefully such a message could be coordinated with U.S. clubs nationwide so that they could be effectively prepared to engage with the new Shaq recruits.
TV and Web Streaming advocate: There currently is no TV home for handball in the U.S. beIN Sports TV and ESPN+ have failed to meet expectations. Shaq works for TNT and coincidentally, play by play for the Olympics will be provided by Matt Winer with NBA TV. Both properties are owned by Turner Networks which has been bought out by AT&T and will now be combined into a new to be named conglomerate with Warner Media and Discovery. A new media behemoth which will likely have a new streaming platform.
What if Shaq advocated for this new streaming platform to carry the EHF Champions League, the World Championships and other handball events?
What if they had Shaq, Kenny, EJ and Charles Barkley do an Inside the EHF Champions League show? And, maybe Matt Winer (with his newfound handball experience) could replace EJ as he has done in the past. Yes, those guys know nothing about handball, but, trust me, it would still be really entertaining!
Sponsor a college program: The interview states that Shaq wants to make the U.S. “Championnat” more attractive. Literally, that means the “National League” and the U.S. doesn’t actually have such a league. Our vast size and the amateur status of the sport pretty much makes that impossible and creating a pro or even a semi-pro league would require some major investment. While Shaq has the resource to create such a league, a more practical effort near term would be to beef up the U.S. collegiate competition. In particular, Shaq could support one college program with the intent of turning that program into a national power. As, I wrote last year a modest investment could very quickly create a national title contender. What college to choose, though? His alma mater, LSU is a candidate, but an HBCU would also be a possibility.
Another humbling USA Basketball defeat… another nail in the coffin for the basketball cast offs can win Olympic Handball Gold strategy
Another USA Basketball Failure
From the “In Case You Missed It” department, this past weekend the USA Men’s National Basketball Team failed in their quest to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics. Before you have a heart attack, rest assured that this was not the 5 on 5 traditional version of the game that Americans have dominated since the it was invented. No, this was the 3 on 3 version (3×3) of the game that was recently added to the Olympic Programme.
And, make no mistake, it’s not the same as the traditional game of basketball. 3×3 is played with just 3 players on on a half court so there’s more of a premium on 1v1 skills and long range shooting. Matches are played to 21 with baskets inside the arc worth 1 point and baskets behind the arc worth 2 points which effectively makes a 5×5 “3 pointer” the equivalent of a “4 pointer”.
But, despite the gimmickry, this is still basketball and it’s a little hard to fathom that the the U.S. failed to even qualify for the Olympics. This is our sport and we were eliminated in the Qualification Tournament Quarterfinals by the Netherlands… The Netherlands? Not a basketball country by any means. There have been only 6 Dutch players in NBA history and the Netherlands had never qualified for the Olympics before and even for the World Championships just once back in 1986.
Not Our Best Athletes…
Of course, the #1 reason (or excuse) for U.S. failure was that we didn’t compete with our best athletes. The U.S. 3×3 roster consisted of Dominique Jones, Robbie Hummel, Kareem Maddox and Joey King. Don’t feel bad if you don’t recognize anyone. These guys aren’t household names. Only Hummel has played in the NBA and that was just 2 nondescript years with the Timberwolves. It’s not like they aren’t good basketball players and probably very good 3×3 basketball specialists. In fact 2 of these athletes were part of the U.S. roster that won the 2019 World Championship.
Still… there’s little doubt that a select group of NBA players wouldn’t do better. Can you imagine Steph Curry or Damon Lillard playing the 3×3 game? For sure there are practicalities that preclude NBA participation. Although, it should be noted that the U.S. Women’s 3×3 team consisting of WNBA athletes qualified for the Olympics.
Basketball Cast Offs vs Basketball Cast Offs
So, who did our cast off basketball pros lose to in this basketball variant? The giant killers from Netherlands featured a roster that would not strike fear in anyone: Julian Jaring, Dimeo van der Horst, Arvin Slagter, and Jessey Voorn. If you research these guys just a little bit you’ll discover that they’ve had rather nondescript pro basketball careers, mostly in the Netherlands and best I can tell they aren’t playing 5×5 hoops anymore. I’m not sure what sort of salaries or more likely stipends they get for playing 3×3 basketball, but I doubt that it’s very much. One of the players even appears to be a personal trainer. So, the Netherlands didn’t send their best basketball players either. Yes, basically our USA basketball cast offs lost to Netherlands basketball cast offs. Good athletes whose pro careers didn’t pan out, but their skill set was ideal for the 3×3 variant. On the whole, I would bet USA cast offs are generally superior to the Netherlands, but as we can plainly see now, not that much better and clearly beatable.
The Relevance to Handball
So, why am I writing yet again about a Team USA Basketball Failure? Because it really, really illustrates just how absolutely and totally absurd the back of the napkin strategy that cast off U.S. pros from other sports could easily win Handball Olympic Gold.
Good gracious. I am getting sick and tired of explaining just how BAT SH** CRAZY such notions are. But, here goes with a little context and perspective.
We didn’t even qualify for the Olympics in a variant of basketball with cast off pros. A sport that we have totally dominated since it was invented. And, you think we can take similar cast off athletes from basketball and other sports and teach them to play handball, a sport they’ve never played before in a month, 6 months, 2 years, 4 years. That’s more than a little tougher than learning the aspects of a modified game of basketball for sure. Oh, and get this. Your manufactured team isn’t going to get to compete against other similar cast off pros. No, no, no, They will get to take on full time handball professionals that have been playing the sport their entire lives.
How can one even begin to reconcile the failure in 3×3 basketball with the idea that handball gold would somehow be a piece of cake?
Honestly, you know what the parallel is here? It would be roughly the same as former Netherlands handball players taking a crash course in basketball and planning on Olympic 5×5 basketball gold. Better start working on your long range jump shot, Luc Steins!
Previous Commentaries regarding the “Cast Offs” strategy and the need to understand that handball is a professional sport
USA Basketball with a Worst Ever World Championships. Does anyone Still Think that Similar Athletes Can Lead us to Handball Greatness: Link
Why a Residency Program at Auburn?: Reason #2: The U.S. had its Greatest Success with Residency Programs… True Statement, but that Success Occurred when Handball was only “Somewhat Professionalized.” Link
Could Lebron James Really become the the Best Handball Player in the World in Just 6 Months? (Part 1): Do I really have to Explain how Crazy that notion is? Link
Could Lebron James Really become the the Best Handball Player in the World in Just 6 Months? (Part 2): Why it’s just not Going to Happen; but what about Lebron Lite? Link
KRAS/Volendam vs Aalsmeer (Saturday, 2000 CET): Video Link
Mark Ortega is Volendam’s coach and Alex Binderis (#4) plays circle runner for Volendam
5th place Volendam hosts 2nd place Aalsmeer. This is Voldendam’s last match of the season and a win would enable them to move into 4th place in the 5 team league: Link
Liga ASOBAL (Spain)
Valladolid vs Leon (-1.5) (Sunday, 1900 CET): Video Link
Drew Donlin plays defense and circle runner for Leon.
Donlin had a great game (5 goals) last weekend vs Barcelona.
7th place Leon travels to 9th place Valladolid. This is Leon’s 2nd to last match of the season and will likely be that last match that will be available on Laligasports TV,
The first match was to be played in Sweden, but had to be cancelled due to positive COVID cases. Both matches will now be played in Athens and the winner will be decided by aggregate goals.
There is a U.S. connection: The U.S. national team played a couple friendly matches vs Ystads in 2020: Link
Joey Williams is the President of the Detroit Handball Club. In Part 1 of our two part conversation we discuss the trials and tribulations of his efforts to start the Detroit Club. For the most part he’s been very successful getting the Detroit Club started in the middle of a pandemic, no less.
Here are some links related to our discussion
Joey’s 2016 experience at a European GK Camp: Link
Joey’s 2019 experience at the ISI Sports Academy in Denmark: Link
2019 Commentary which discussed the hurdles of starting a new club: Link
Could a New Distribution of Olympic Qualification Slots be Coming?
Last Friday, (21 May 2021), European Handball Federation (EHF) President Michael Wiederer gave a wide ranging interview with the Mannhiemer Morgen, a newspaper in Germany. For the most part the interview covered topics directly pertaining to the pandemic and EHF competitions. However, I bulls-eyed in on a couple of questions pertaining to handball’s place on the world stage:
Mannheimer Morgen: You are the representative of European handball interests, recently more and more nations like Argentina, Brazil and Egypt have drawn attention to themselves. How do you rate that?
Wiederer: This development is important for the sport, especially for the international market value of handball. Because as long as we are a sport with a European character, the marketing opportunities remain limited. Many international corporations are not based in Europe. I therefore welcome developments on the other continents. It was a very important step to expand the World Cup to 32 teams.
Mannheimer Morgen: Because handball is so European, the Olympic status is discussed again and again. Are you concerned about this?
Wiederer: We don’t have to worry about this status any more or less than many other sports. We aroused great interest at the Olympic Games in Rio five years ago. But this is also about internationalization. The world association is trying to get more starting places for other continents, that would be at the expense of Europe. As you can see, this is also about a balance, about different interests in terms of the product and a possible narrowing to a few markets.
Great IHF Support, but no Olympic Ticket
What makes Wiederer’s response newsworthy is that to the best of my knowledge it was the first time in print that I’ve seen it publicly acknowledged that the IHF was considering a redistribution of Olympic slots and the logical impact that such a redistribution would have on European nations.
The IHF, of course, has made no secret of its desires to develop new markets in the U.S. and China. Steps taken to help the U.S. include:
The U.S. Development Project, headed by former EHF President, Jean Brihault that has provided some grant funding for the U.S.
The dissolution of the Pan American Team Handball Federation (PATHF) into two new confederations, the North American & Caribbean Handball Confederation (NACHC) and the South & Central American Handball Confederation (SCAHC).
Selecting the U.S. as the NACHC representative to the 2021 Men’s Handball World Championships when a competition couldn’t be held due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
But, while the PATHF split into the NACHC and SCAHC resulted in separate new qualification paths for the World Championships there has been so similar change announced regarding Olympic qualification. Both the NACHC and SCAHC were still grouped together for qualification via the 2019 PANAM Games.
And, anyone who follows handball in Pan America knows that presently it’s very unlikely that a NACHC nation will qualify for the Olympics via the PANAM Games. Any NACHC Men’s team hoping to qualify would likely have to beat both Brazil and Argentina, two nations that would likely be double digit favorites against any NACHC nation. For the women, it would mean beating Brazil and right now staying within 10 goals would be a major accomplishment for any NACHC women’s team. For reference Brazil beat the USA 34-9 in a 2019 semifinal.
But, if the NACHC were to be given its own slot? Well, that changes the equation entirely. Cuba would instantly become the NACHC favorite for both Men’s and Women’s Olympic Qualification, but the U.S. wouldn’t be far behind. And, every other NACHC nation that has been playing handball for awhile could also envision a legitimate shot at Olympic qualification.
How a Separate Olympic Qualification Slot Would Help the U.S.
For the U.S. a new Olympic Qualification path would likely lead to changes in terms of budget and budgetary priorities. For the past 20 years or so funding from the U.S. Olympic and Paralympic Committee (USOPC) has been primarily tied to medal prospects. With the U.S. not even having realistic chances of qualifying for the Olympics this has resulted in minimal support from the USOPC. This could change with Olympic qualification suddenly being realistic and feasible as USA Team Handball could make a legitimate case that increased support in key areas could result in Olympic qualification.
In turn, it could also increase the quality and quantity of athletes pursuing handball in the U.S. Historically, one of the big enticements for athlete recruitment has been the possibility of being an Olympian some day. Indeed, at one time making a U.S. national team roster was tantamount to being an Olympian. Over time, however, as U.S. Olympic qualification prospects changed from likely to very unlikely this recruiting pitch became less effective as did the quantity and overall quality of the athletes recruited.
IOC Pressure and Potential European Backlash
It’s never been officially stated, but reportedly the IOC has expressed to the IHF its concerns about handball being too European. And, it has been rumored that this concern even included a warning about handball perhaps being taken off of the Olympic Programme. It’s hard to believe that handball would really be removed from the Olympics, but there is some validity to the underlying point of handball being too European. And, if a little IOC pressure has served as an impetus to put more focus on developing a U.S. handball market I sure won’t complain. And, I also wouldn’t complain about an Olympic slot being awarded to the NACHC as that would be a phenomenal development for the U.S. and the entire NACHC.
But, who would complain… and loudly? The European Handball nations; because in most instances it would result in a slot being taken away from a European side.
Current Olympic Qualification Slots
For reference, here is how the 12 Olympic slots are currently awarded for both the Men and Women:
Host Nation (1)
Reigning World Champion (1)
Europe (1)
Africa (1)
Asia (1)
Pan America (1)
Qualification Tournaments (6)
And, here is how the different continental federations have fared in the Olympic Qualification Tournaments since the current format was implemented in 2008.
2020 Olympic Qualification Tournaments
Men: Europe (5); Pan America (1)
Women: Europe (6)
2016 Olympic Qualification Tournaments
Men: Europe (5); Africa (1)
Women: Europe (6)
2012 Olympic Qualification Tournaments
Men: Europe (6)
Women: Europe (6)
2008 Olympic Qualification Tournaments
Men: Europe (6)
Women: Europe (5); Asia (1)
So, it hasn’t been a clean sweep for European nations, but it’s been close. If a slot were to be given to the NACHC it would likely remove a European team. A European team that would probably have made the quarterfinals and would have had a legitimate shot of medaling.
A Change in Time for 2024?
Because of the likely ramifications, I’m not very surprised that this hasn’t been publicly addressed by the IHF. It’s more often the sort of thing that’s discussed informally at coffee breaks and dinner parties. Not the sort of thing that gets promulgated until there’s an agreement in principle by the parties affected. Wiederer’s response in the interview is simply confirmation that this discussion has taken place and Europe is aware of it. Actually, likely been a party to the discussions since they would face the negative impacts.
However, if this change were to be made in time for the 2024 Olympics the clock is definitely ticking. Under the current qualification system the 2023 PANAM Games would again serve as qualification for the Olympics for the NACHC and SCAHC. That may be two years away, but qualification for the PANAM Games would start next summer with regional qualification in South, Central and North America. So, basically, just a year is available to change course and for the NACHC and SCAHC to come up with new separate qualification plans. This is doable, but action would be needed fairly quickly.
And, barring a change in time for 2024 one might wonder whether a change would be made for 2028. This is because the NACHC would already have a representative due to the U.S. hosting. Such a change would in fact result in 2 NACHC nations participating in the Olympics. Yes, given the sometimes glacial pace of change… this might end up being a change for the 2032 Olympics.
11th place Gyöngyös travels to take on 13th place Cegled. Gyongyos isn’t in danger of relegation, but would still like to get 2 points and break a 3 game losing streak.
HBL 2 (Germany)
VfL Lübeck-Schwartau vs Dormagen (-0.5) (Friday, 1930) CET): Link (VPN required; More info; What I use)
The regular season is over and Cannes is now playing in a relegation competition of 4 clubs with the last place club being relegated from D2F to N1F (2nd to 3rd level of play). Cannes is currently in 2nd place and a win would ensure that they don’t finish 4th. Cannes played Octevill sur Mer a few weeks ago and lost 32-23
6 Degrees of J.J. Hombrados. My Hombrados # is 2. What’s Yours?
This past weekend, as I do almost every weekend, I watched a variety of different handball matches featuring U.S. National Team players. One of those matches had circle runner, Drew Donlin, and his Spanish club team Leon taking on Guadalajara. And, in goal for Guadalajara was a blast from the past, Jose Javier Hombrados. I say a “blast from the past” in that he was playing back when I was playing, but I guess if you’re still playing… well, then you’re still the “present”.
And, at age 49, he’s still getting the job done in the Liga ASOBAL. His reaction speed is still pretty decent and as many matches as he’s played he’s got a ridiculous experience advantage over every player he’s up against. He read Drew Donlin pretty well on this wide open 6 meter opportunity. See how he leaves one side of the goal covered and one side wide open. Except it’s not so wide open because he’s moved out from the goal. He patiently waits for the shot and deftly stops it with his arm.
Side note 1: Laligasportstv and it’s streaming of the Liga ASOBAL is just awesome. Check it out and follow my twice weekly updates with the start times and direct links to matches.
Side note 2: If you want you can check out Hombrados yourself he plays live on Wednesday as Guadalajara takes on Cuenca at 2000 before the EHF CL Quarterfinals: Direct Video Link
6 Degrees of J.J. Hombrados
Kevin Bacon has been in a lot of movies and it’s been noted that just about any actor can be connected to him pretty quickly. As the 6 Degrees of Kevin Bacon Wikipedia explains with this example:
Ian McKellen
Ian McKellen was in X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014) with Michael Fassbender and James McAvoy
McAvoy and Fassbender were in X-Men: First Class (2011) with Kevin Bacon
Therefore, McAvoy and Fassbender have Bacon numbers of 1, and McKellen has a Bacon number of 2.
For Handball it works the same way. Here’s 1 example;
John Ryan
I played for the U.S. vs Sweden (Stefan Olsson, Robert Hedin, etc) at the 1993 World Championships
(Olsson, Hedin, etc) played for Sweden vs Spain (Hombrados) at the (I’m sure they played against him several times)
Olsson and Hedin have an Hombrados number of 1, I have an Hombrados number of 2
I suspect almost every pro or national team player for the last 40 years or so has a Hombrados number of 1 or 2. Amateurs all over the world have an Hombrados number of 3.
In some respects this is less remarkable than it might first appear. If one plays even just 1 match vs a big star it opens one up to a lot of possible connections because that big star has probably played a lot of matches vs a lot of teams. One could do this with a number of other players and get similar results. Kiril Lazarov and Nikola Karabatic would be two examples for sure.
However, what separates Hombrados is the length of his active career. He’s been playing professionally for 31 seasons. 31 seasons! Kiril Lazarov was just 10 years old when he started out. Think about it… Back in 1990 he probably played some matches against some players in their mid to late 30s. Somebody, say 37, who would now be 68 years old today. That senior citizen, via Hombrados, is now directly connected with 18 year old players just starting their careers in 2021. Some old guys on the couch in Spain are watching, surely chuckling to themselves and feeling a little bit younger with the comforting knowledge they can still say, “Yeah, I played against him” when they watch a match.
2 Generations, 3 Generations… Do I Hear 4?
Here’s another way of looking at it. There are a number of father-son handball player combos where the father and son have played against common players. Think Talant Dujshebaev and his sons, Alex and Daniel. Or Jackson Richardson and his son Melvyn. They’ve all played against or even with athletes like Lazarov or Karabatic. But, the length of Hombrados’s career pushes it to the possibility of 3 generations all playing against him. Yes, it wouldn’t surprise me if indeed it’s true, that some grandfathers in Spain can share personal experience tips on Hombrados with their grandsons. And, it one wants to stretch the generational math just a little bit… 4 generations (great grandfather, grandfather, father and son) could theoretically be possible.
If Hombrados keeps making saves like he did this past Saturday and if he wants too keep playing that just might happen in a few years.
Nicole Andersen, has been playing for the U.S. Women’s National Team since 2015. She has Danish and American citizenship and currently plays her club handball for AS Cannes Mandelieu in the French 2nd Division.
In Part 2 of our interview we first discuss Cannes Mandelieu’s current relegation battle and her adjustment to a new role as defensive specialist. We then look back at the U.S. Women’s National Team competitions in 2019 and look ahead to the 2021 North American & Caribbean Championship which will take place this August in Elgin, Illinois.
Cannes plays this Sunday at 1600 CET / 1000 US ET and the match will be available on their Facebook page. Follow Team Handball News on social media for regular updates on live streams for matches played by U.S. National Team players: TwitterFacebookInstagram
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