I “HEART” Flensburg

Posted on June 2, 2014 by John Ryan

Bold Prediction Comes True.

This past weekend Flensburg pulled off one of the more unlikely Champions League victories in the history of the sport. On Saturday in the Semifinals they came back from a 6 goal deficit late in the 2nd half against highly favored Barcelona to send the game into overtime. Following overtime they then knocked off Barca in penalty shots. Then on Sunday against favored Kiel they came back again from a 6 goal lead, this time in the first half. They then built a 4 goal lead and held off Kiel to win their first Champions League Title. Going into the Final Four they were 10-1 underdogs; the afterthought team just happy to be there. Who would have thought they could win it all?

Bold Prediction Comes True

Last September I participated in a Champions League Preseason EHF Google Hangout. During the discussion the moderator noted that teams like Flensburg hadn’t even mentioned. Seizing the moment, I put on my hat and boldly predicted, “I’ll go on record: It’s Flensburg’s year.” (The prediction is at 27:18 LINK) A little while later we were asked to name our Final Four and I went with Barca, Kiel, Veszprem and Flensburg.

If you’ve ever been in the predicting business, you know how fraught with peril it is. Listen to any Sunday talk show or sports radio show. You’ll hear the politician or blabbermouth run for cover when asked to make a prediction. Either that or they hedge their bets in a big way. But, forced to make a prediction I used a little logic and a little bit of what I wanted to have happen and voila I nailed it. And, this was way back in September… Why it reminds me of the 1995 NBA playoffs when I made a little bet in Las Vegas on the Houston Rockets when they were down 3 games to 1 to the Phoenix Suns. Or the time when I predicted that Troy Calhoun would some day become the Head Football Coach at the AF Academy… when he was still a cadet. Alright, enough gloating. In the dustbin of my memory there’s surely countless predictions that have been entirely and totally wrong. Still, for sure, it is still incredibly satisfying to be so entirely and totally correct.

How did an American become a Flensburg Fan anyway?

But, if my bold prediction was partly based on wishful thinking, why on Earth would I be pulling for Flensburg anyway? I’ve never stepped foot there. I might never even visit that little city on the Germany-Denmark border. I don’t speak German or Danish. I’ve never seen the club play in person. Why that particular club and not some other? Heck, I lived in France and I’ve got no particular allegiance to any club there. Why does this American wear his Flensburg hat all over town and why does he care? Why did I have the biggest smile on my face yesterday afternoon as they hoisted that trophy?

As often is the case with fandom it’s a combination of historical circumstances, personality and perceived identification. Here’s some elements as to why I’m a Flensburg fan:

Historical Context: Back in 2005 as I was just learning about club handball in Europe I had the pleasure to witness the most oddly compelling and dramatic match I’ve ever seen in any sport, let alone handball. This was the 2nd leg of the Montpellier – Flensburg match where Montpellier scored on a free throw with no time remaining to lose by “only 13” and advance on aggregate. I wrote about this 9 years ago and I’m still shaking my head as I recall that match. I was already a fan of handball, but that match really ignited a passion to follow the sport more closely. It was also my first introduction to the Flensburg club.

An Iconic Star: After you watch a team play quite a bit and see how individual players carry themselves on the court you start to identify with certain players. Quite often you see a player’s demeanor, their ability to score in the clutch and their attitude. If you identify with those characteristics you can’t help but root for those players and their team. Such a player for me was Lars Christiansen. Even though he hasn’t worn a Flensburg jersey in four years, some of my fandom surely still can be attributed to him.

Blue Collar Team: Rightly or wrongly, I perceive Flensburg as a blue collar team of hard working players. Don’t get me wrong they’ve got some world class players, but they are a notch down from the Barca’s and Kiel’s of Europe. And, while they’ve got a few hired guns they just don’t feel like a mercenary team. They play together as a team, not as a team of individual stars. When they win as they did yesterday it has the feel of a real team celebration and a collective victory.

So, hats off to “my boys” from Flensburg. Looks like I’ll need a 2014 EHF Champions tournament T-Shirt to go along with my hat.

But, if you want to know who’s going to the Final Four in 2015 and who’s going to win it all there’ll be no more freebies. You’re going to have to subscribe to my betting service.

Part 1: Grass Roots vs National Team Focus: Recent National Team Losses Should Raise Doubts on National Team Focus

Posted on May 30, 2014 by John Ryan

How does a club team in Guadeloupe beat a national team from the U.S.? Answer: It’s start with superior youth development programs.

This past April the USA Women’s National Team traveled to Puerto Rico where they played several matches. They lost twice to the Puerto Rican national team, beat the Puerto Rican junior national team and lost twice to French Guadeloupe’s top club team, Intrepide. Depending on your perspective these results could be considered as either totally disheartening or a sign of mild progression. If your perspective is that of an old timer you’re disappointed as Puerto Rico is a team that the U.S. would typically beat by 10 goals or more. If your perspective is more recent it’s a sign of mild progression as the Puerto Rican team is roughly equal to the U.S. and we were able to play competitively against them in their home country.

More interesting to me, however, are the the two losses against, Club Intrepide, and the contrast it presents. Most Americans probably don’t know much about France’s Overseas Departments: Guadeloupe, Martinique and Reunion Island. I, for one, was fairly ignorant about them until I lived in France and started following French sports more closely. France’s national handball and basketball teams have several players from these Islands far removed from France. And athletes from from these islands also play on a number of club teams in France. I saw this first hand in the over 35 basketball league I played in while living in Paris. Trust me, those guys from the Caribe can play ball and this tall American player knew he was in for a workout, but also thankfully for some Ti’ Punch after the match.

Still, Guadaloupe has only around 400,000 inhabitants and the town of Sainte-Anne where Club Intrepide is based has 23,000 residents. How does a small town with very modest living conditions put together a club that can beat the U.S. National Team? Well, there are probably a number of reasons, but I would argue that the underlying reason is that the tiny town of Sainte-Anne has a better organized and structured youth program than what the entire U.S.has put together coast to coast. Most likely the players on Club Intrepide have been playing since their early teens, if not earlier. Whereas most of the players on the U.S. weren’t introduced to the sport until their 20’s.

U.S. Women’s Team: Modest Progress or Regression?

In theory, with 318 million people the U.S. can overcome its lack of developed youth programs by finding and training top notch athletes regardless of age. And, superior athleticism can indeed trump skill and experience if the athleticism gap is big enough. But, that’s a big “if” and these recent results are a pretty strong indication that the U.S. isn’t overwhelming it’s competition athletically. Instead it is simply a continuation of less than satisfactory results seen in 2011 and 2013. And, while Rome wasn’t built in a day there should be an expectation of better results.

Even more concerning is a not widely advertised loss that the U.S. Women suffered against West Point at the Collegiate nationals. (I did not see this match, but heard one of the commentators mention it during one of the other matches.) I suspect that the U.S side had some very recent additions to the U.S. Residency program, but there’s still no excuse for ever losing to a collegiate team. Residency athletes are supposed to be the cream of the crop, training on a daily basis and should be able to overwhelm a collegiate side. Still, I will say it’s not the first time a Service Academy side has played a National Team close: When I was a cadet at the Air Force Academy we narrowly lost a close match vs the U.S. National Team. Thing is, though: I was on the Men’s club team and we lost to the Women’s National Team. (Maybe, this gives you some perspective as to where I’m coming from when I make an assessment that not one single player on the current USA Women’s team would have made any of our Olympic rosters from 84 to 96!)

Don’t Blame the Athletes

I’d like to make some perfectly clear. I do not, nor should anyone else, blame the athletes for their lack of success. They are a hard working bunch making a lot of sacrifices to improve their game. They’ve been given the opportunity to train full time at a Residency Program and they’re doing their best to make the most of it. Heck, in many respects as a former national team player with modest skills I really identify with them and their dreams.

Taking Stock: Are Residency Programs the best place to spend limited resources?

No, if blame is to be assigned that blame goes straight to the decision makers. And, basically the fundamental question is whether it is better to direct resources towards athletes chasing the 2016 dream or towards efforts that will improve chances for U.S. success in 2020 or 2024. As someone who’s a already expended quite a bit of time and energy addressing this question it’s fairly clear where I stand. Although, written a year ago little has changed to alter my position. In fact, it’s hardened as 2016 Olympic Qualification seems more unlikely now, the Auburn program seems to be a bit on the austere side and the prospect of a U.S. hosted 2024 Olympics seems even more likely.

Some might argue that resources directed towards 2016 also helps the out years, but the reality is that there’s minimal overlap at this point in time. This is especially true if you look at the ages of both the men’s and women’s team. The women’s program at Auburn is especially long in the tooth with many players in their late 20s. Even worse in what I’ll generously call highly questionable recruiting the U.S. has brought in several rookies that probably range in age from 24-29. (I say probably, because the U.S. Federation doesn’t list the ages of it’s athletes on its website and ages were deduced by internet searches for their last year of college.) If out year success is desired it goes without saying that this sort of recruit should be the very rare exception instead of the norm.

The U.S. Federation hasn’t provided much in terms of rationale for this spending decision other than that previous residency programs have resulted in most successful national teams for the U.S. A true statement, but one that neglects a number of “Yes, buts” to include:

That previous success wasn’t all that successful: No Olympic medals and zero victories over top European sides in Olympic or WC competition.
European leagues are far more professionalized now: Virtually every top athlete in the world is now training and competing regularly in a professional environment superior to the club and national team regimens of the past, further widening the gap between what the U.S. can do with a residency program.
Our competition in Pan America is now much stiffer: Grass Roots development in Latin America has resulted in stronger national teams, both technically and athletically. And, their top players are now playing for top European clubs.
More post college opportunities for collegiate athletes: Playing opportunities with decent salaries abound for 2nd and 3rd tier athletes in many sports making recruiting crossover athletes even more challenging.

Quite frankly, I am totally perplexed that smart people don’t look at these stark realities and come to the same conclusion that I have: That a Residency Program focused on crossover athletes in their mid to late 20’s has very little chance of success. That it is a huge drain on very limited resources. And, that other paths and possibilities need to be considered, carefully assessed and pursued.

What are some of those possibilities? In part 2 I will identify some options for consideration but, only after I first take a closer look at the current club situation and the state of grass roots development in the U.S.

The legend, now in bookstores

Posted on March 14, 2014 by John Ryan

Svetlana Kitic in
action, and the cover of her biography

By Altay Atli

Handball biographies are a rare commodity, probably because publishers do not see any profits in this genre, or also because retired world-class handball players do not bother to put into writing their experiences and reflections on the sports. A recent exception provides a gem of story of a life devoted to handball.

The biography of Svetlana Kitic, a former Yugoslav handball player who is officially designated by the International Handball Federation as the “world’s best female handball player of all times”, is a must read for all handball enthusiasts. Titled “Ceca” after Kitic’s nickname, the biography written by Svetlana Vujcic, journalist and former teammate of Kitic, tells us the story of a woman who rose to the top against all odds, gave her all for the sports she loved and played at the competitive level for more than three decades. “There were good and bad days, tears, broken fingers, noses, jaws, but I would go through all that again”, says Kitic, “Handball is simply my life, the thing which fulfills me the most and makes me happy. If I wasn’t like that I wouldn’t have played it until I was 49. Yes, if I was born again, I would live my life exactly the same.”

The biography tells us actually two stories that are interwoven throughout. First there is the story of Kitic the legend, a handball player par excellence, who won a total of 21 club titles; silver and gold medal in the Olympic Games, Moscow 1980 and Los Angeles 1984 respectively; gold, silver and bronze medals in world championships; and played a total of 202 games for the Yugoslav national team scoring more than 900 goals. Throughout the book, we trace her path, from the very early days in the Bosnian town of Tuzla when she “irresistibly resembled Pippi Longstocking”, to her beloved club Radnicki in Belgrade and on to clubs in Germany, Italy (where she was known as “Maradona in skirt”) and Spain before moving back home. We watch her developing a style, with her feints that break down the defense, her blind passes and bullet-like shots from the knee level sharply to the upper corners of the goal. We watch her perfecting her games, winning games and hearts, sometimes also making “the dumbest mistake, ruin the game, miss a goal many times” but “never tolerating surrender and lack of competitiveness.” Her exploits with the Yugoslav national team provide us with an in-depth overview of not only a successful athlete’s career, but of the history of European handball itself.

Then there is the other story: Kitic the human. What is a perfectly functioning and merciless goal-scoring machine on the handball court has a human face on the outside, with all her desires, fears, frustrations and, well, love affairs. Kitic got married four times and we see in the book that her relationship with her partners have frequently gone through turbulent times. Adding to this, the problems she had with clubs and the federation, with individuals in the handball world, financial troubles and externally induced situations such as the NATO bombing of Belgrade in 1999, we see Kitic trying to stand on her feet, never giving up, and surviving to score another round of goals in the next match. Whenever she needs solace she finds it in two places: her children and handball: “Handball didn’t take anything from me, fooled or deceived me, like people are capable of doing. It gave me everything in the world, and by making magic, it made… me.”

Kitic’s is a life of ambition, struggle and endurance. It is a life of handball. As Serbian coach Milorad Milatovic wrote, hers is a “story about the greatest female handball player of all times, the mother of three, wife and grandmother, the story about a great woman.”

A personal note: Zhongshan, southeast China, the year is 1999. The World Junior Women’s Handball Championship is in progress. Turkey and Yugoslavia are in the same group. Svetlana Kitic is the manager of the Yugoslav team, and the author of this article has the same job with the Turkish team… A talk I had with her, over a cup of rice wine, has been an amazing lesson for me on handball and life. It has been a real privilege, but for those who haven’t had it, the book, which is available in both English and Serbian, is recommended.

And a question to readers: Handball biographies, though they do not exist in large numbers, are/can be a source of both knowledge and inspiration for handball lovers, especially for young players. So, dear reader, whose biography would you like to read the most?

Pivotal USA – Puerto Rico Match likely to determine nonqualifier

Posted on February 27, 2014 by John Ryan

The North American and Caribbean Men’s Handball Championships will qualify 4 teams for this summer’s Pan American Handball Championships in Uruguay. With 5 nations participating this means only 1 nation won’t punch their ticket for Uruguay. There’s still quite a few games to be played, but with Puerto Rico having lost their first two matches by large margins they appear to be the weakest team. Mathematically, there best hope is a win today against the U.S. which is the only other team without a victory. The U.S. lost 21-15 against Cuba in its only match so far. Following a 13-5 deficit in the first half the U.S. played much better in the 2nd half, actually outscoring the Cubans 10-8. Based on that performance the U.S. should be able to get a win and all but punch their ticket for Uruguay.

Match time is 5:00 PM (U.S. Eastern Time) and will be streamed live at the link below.

Tournament Standings: Link

Webstreaming website: Link

Youth action in the Mediterranean

Posted on February 26, 2014 by John Ryan

Egypt won the Mediterranean title, beating Tunisia

Guest columnist, Altay Atli, is a lecturer in international relations and economics based in Istanbul, Turkey. Altay is a former handball player, a former handball manager, a former handball journalist and forever, a handball fan. His work involves a considerable amount of travel and the opportunity to see handball played in many parts of the world. In this article he reports on the recently completed Mediterranean Handball Championship and its emphasis on youth development.

Last week, Chieti, a small town in Central Italy a few miles away from the Adriatic Sea, hosted the Mediterranean Men’s Handball Championship. Eight countries littoral to the Mediterranean, namely Cyprus, Egypt, France, Italy, Libya, Montenegro, Tunisia and Turkey, took part in the event, which was won by Egypt after a penalty shootout thriller against Tunisia (36:34). The championship went largely unnoticed in international sports media, something that can be attributed to the fact that the championship was for under 17s. However thanks to the live streaming provided by the organizers a large audience could enjoy the quality of handball played in Chieti.

This championship makes us rethink the feasibility and the merits of regional events that include participants from more than one continental federation. At professional level international handball, each continental federation has its own busy schedule, which, when global events such as the world championships and the Olympic Games are also taken into consideration, seldom leave any space for regional events in a tightly packed calendar. This is why events like the quadrennial Mediterranean Games fail to attract the crème of the region’s handball to their ranks. Given the hectic schedule of professional sports, developed handball countries either prefer to take their reserve teams to such events or they do not participate at all. The most recent version of the Mediterranean Games, held in June 2013 in Mersin, Turkey, illustrates this trend. In the men’s competition, which was won by Egypt, handball giants like France and Spain did not even take part, while in the women’s competition, which was won by Serbia, developed countries (such as France) either did not participate or competed with junior teams. For instance, from the 16 players Serbia had in Mersin, only five made it to the roster that played the final of the World Championships in December.

In other words, at the senior/professional level, regional events such as those organized in the Mediterranean, do not offer a bright prospect. However, at a lower level, they can be meaningful. The Mediterranean Handball Confederation, which operates since 2003, organizes the Mediterranean Championships on an annual basis for both men and women, and these events are, as the web site of the confederation suggests, “preferably reserved to young athletes.” If the focus had been on senior teams, both the confederation and the championship could have been doomed to irrelevance in the face of the increasingly competitive and commercialized environment of professional handball. By targeting the youth, however, they can serve the sports in other, more purposive ways

First and foremost, the Mediterranean Championship can help the development of handball by providing talented young players with the opportunity to gain international experience. In Chieta, all the players, and particularly those from countries like Libya and Cyprus which do not have strong national competitions, gained high level competitive experience, while some of them including Egypt’s Hassain Anis, Tunisia’s Ghachem Oussama and Turkey’s Halil Ibrahim Ozturk, managed to win international recognition thanks to their successful performance. In the meantime, the championship also offered a platform for young referees to make a debut in international handball. The final match was umpired by the young Italian couple Francesco Simone and Pietro Monitillo, who are on EHF’s candidate referees list, and together with two more couples from Italy, two from France and one each from Turkey and Tunisia, they have taken an early important step in their careers. In brief, the Mediterranean Championship contributed and is likely to continue to do so for the development of handball by giving young players and referees the opportunity to perform at the international level and enter the spotlight.

Youth handball development in the Mediterranean is also important at a different level. The region in question has been going through a difficult period. Southern Europe is still suffering from a financial crisis and youth unemployment is a painful fact of this region. Northern Africa is undergoing a transformation in the post-Arab spring period and the youth is at the center of this process as well. The Asian coast of the Mediterranean, not represented in Chieti, is currently the most problematic part, with the civil war going on in Syria without an end in sight. Empowerment of the youth is a vital requisite for restoring stability in the region, and youth interaction through sports, culture and education, both within and between countries, is the key here. Handball cannot create miracles in this respect, but its contribution can be useful.

Handball in Hong Kong

Posted on February 12, 2014 by John Ryan

Hong Kong
team taking on China in the Hong Kong International Handball
Championships

Today’s guest columnist is Altay Atli, a lecturer in international relations and economics based in Istanbul, Turkey. Altay is a former handball player, a former handball manager, a former handball journalist and forever, a handball fan. His work involves a considerable amount of travel and the opportunity to see handball played in many parts of the world. Hence, this article on handball in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong appears to be all about skyscrapers, financial centers and noodle shops, yet there are many other faces to the city-state, including its citizens’ keenness on and its government’s support for Olympic sports. Although handball is not a crowd drawer, at least for now, growing interest in our sports makes it likely for Hong Kong to be more visible on the international handball scene in the near future.

Handball arrived in Hong Kong during the early 1970s with students returning home from Taiwan. The league was launched and the national teams were formed in the 80s. It was in this period that both men’s and women’s national teams have competed in the Asian Handball Championship finals, an achievement that could not be repeated after 1989. After a period of hibernation, handball in Hong Kong is now back on the rise. National teams do not make it to the Asian finals, which are significantly more competitive compared to the 1980s, but they are recently obtaining good results in the international events they are taking part. One such event is the National Games of the People’s Republic China, which is kind of mini Olympic games where the provinces of China compete. Hong Kong, as a special administrative region within the People’s Republic, is taking part in these games, and in last year’s version held in Liaoning, the men’s handball team was ranked seventh, an important achievement considering the improving quality of handball in the mainland. The Hong Kong International Championships, held annually since 2001, provides another platform for the national teams to compete against international opponents, and so far strong handball countries such as Germany, Slovenia, Korea, Japan and China, as well as developing ones like Iran, Mongolia and the French region of La Reunion have taken part in this competition, enabling the teams of Hong Kong to gain international experience.

Handball leagues in Hong Kong are well organized providing the athletes with the opportunity to play as many matches as possible. There are currently four divisions in the men’s competition, and three divisions in the women’s, each division being composed of ten teams. A total of seventy teams for a small city-state of the size of Hong Kong is a significant number. Teams are made up of amateur players from Hong Kong, as well as expatriates and exchange students from European countries. Leagues run from October to April, and they are played in multifunctional indoor sports facilities as well as an outdoor court used solely for handball games. Having adequate facilities is important in Hong Kong, where space is one of the most precious commodities.

The Handball Association of Hong Kong, China (HAHKC) is the organization responsible for the development of the sports in the city-state. The association is funded by the government and its plans for the development of handball are based on two main pillars. One is the development of the player base through a systemized and well structured plan for different age groups, and the other is the attraction of larger audiences through beach handball.

The development plan of HAHKC starts with the elementary training program for kids aged 12 and younger, and the intermediate training program for under 15s. Around one hundred school children are enrolled in these programs each year through a scheme financed by the Hong Kong government. Successful athletes are promoted to district programs from where they are selected into the young athletes training program for the age group between 16 and 19. After a competitive process, better players are taken into regional squads, which undertake overseas training camps every year, such as the one in Korea in 2013 and the one in Taiwan in February 2014. These squads form the player base from which the junior and senior national teams are selected.

This hierarchical structure offers a well-designed system for choosing talents and developing capabilities and skills. On the other side of the coin, beach handball is the instrument used to breed interest for the sports among Hong Kong’s citizens. In 2013, Asian Men’s and Women’s Beach Handball Championships were held in Hong Kong, not on the sandy beaches of the Lantau island, but on a sand filled court right at the center of the buzzling town. It was a wise decision by the HAHKC, which chose to take the game to the people. A total of two thousand spectators watched the event, where the men’s competition was won by Qatar, and the women’s competition by Thailand. Hong Kong ranked fifth in both competitions.

This year the team of Hong Kong was invited to the Asian Men’s Handball Championship in Bahrain, but it could not make it there due to financial problems. Similarly, funding is needed for Hong Kong’s handball teams to compete in the XVII Asian Games to be held in Incheon, South Korea this October, but so far prospects seem bleak. HAHKC officials point out that the government’s priority is to finance “sports for all” instead of competitive events. But perhaps, at the current stage of development, this approach serves handball better. Financing young players’ build-up is definitely more crucial for the future of the sports in Hong Kong and in time sponsors can be expected to enter the scene. Until then, Hong Kong needs to continue to implement its development plan and to gain more supporters through attractive events like beach handball. “We want to play more games with teams from other countries” says Chan Ming Hong, sports executive of HAHKC, “we want to learn more.” So far it has been a successfully pursued learning process for the handball community in Hong Kong. Expect them to do more.

Bahrain determining the fate of Iran and Korea

Posted on February 2, 2014 by Christer Ahl

Bahrain’s failure to win the game gets Iran a place in the World Championship

When I have followed the Asian Men’s Championship closely in recent days, I have seen it coming: the opportunity for suspicions of ‘orchestration’ on the final day of the preliminary groups. And today the scenario was as intriguing as it possibly could be. In the final game in its group, the Bahraini had it in their hands to ‘decide’ whether Iran or Korea would join them in next year’s World Championship.

The background is that three teams qualify, in addition to Qatar, who are the hosts for the 2015 World Championships. With the format now being used in the Asian Championship, this means that the top two teams in each preliminary group qualify not just for the semifinals but also for the World Championship. This is because Qatar is the superior team and is already through to the semifinal from their group prior to the final game tomorrow.

In the other group, the top teams appeared to be Bahrain, Iran and Korea. Iran and Korea tied, 24-24, on the first day. Then Bahrain beat Korea 26-25 two days ago. So from a Korean perspective, today they first needed to win against Saudi Arabia, which they did (28-24), and then they were in the very awkward position of needing to trust Bahrain to defeat Iran. A tie would mean that Bahrain would still win the group and avoid Qatar in the semi-finals, but above all it would mean that Iran would get the second place in the group on better goal difference than Korea.

One can imagine the frustration felt by the Koreans. On several occasions in the past, they have suffered the consequences when some of the West Asians have ‘ganged up’ on them. One just needs to remember the fraud that was perpetrated against the Koreans in the qualifying event for the 2008 Olympic Games. So surely Korea would have reasons to be suspicious. On the other hand, given that Iran is seen by the Bahrain government as the culprit, when the Shiite population in Bahrain is revolting against repression from the Sunni minority regime, one would wonder why a Bahraini team would feel encouraged to give a helping hand to precisely Iran.

But the final result of the Bahrain-Iran game will clearly raise some eye-brows, because the outcome was 30-30, after a 17-14 half-time lead for Bahrain. Of course, the two teams seem relatively evenly matched, so such an outcome could be just a fluke. And judging from reliable reports, there are no indications of manipulation. The Bahraini really seemed to be determined to win the game until the very end. One must hope that this is also the way it was viewed by the Koreans, and that they instead blame their own inability to defeat Iran in the opening game. A flare-up of overt geopolitical fights and accusations is not what the handball world needs.

Championships in Africa and Europe: ‘Déjà vu’ all over again…

Posted on January 26, 2014 by Christer Ahl

The Algerians celebrate the victory of their men’s team

Europe

When a few days ago I predicted that Croatia, Denmark, France and Spain would move through to the semifinals, I was almost hoping that I would be wrong. An event needs some surprises to have real spark, but no other team was capable of causing any upsets towards the end. Poland came back from a weak start in the tournament, but it was not enough. In the fifth place game they lost against Iceland, who confirmed their remarkable ability to stay in the top group year after year. Sweden collapsed in the key games, and the young Russian team did not have the power and experience to make it all the way.

So in the semifinals, we had some rather thrilling match-ups, with Denmark being pressed by Croatia but holding on for a 29-27 win. The Croatians complained about everything being orchestrated to ensure a Danish win. Perhaps the Croatians have forgotten about the World Championship 2009 when they were the hosts and everyone else complained in the same way; not to mention 2007 in Germany which was even more flagrant. That is, whether we like it or not, part of the home court advantage. In the other semi-final we saw a real ‘roller coaster’, with France prevailing 30-27 against Spain. The bronze medal game was the usual kind of anticlimactic affair, with Spain finding slightly more inspiration and winning 29-28.

But who had expected that the final, in front of a fanatic Danish crowd, would become even more anticlimactic? And that we would have ‘déjà vu’ not just in the sense that the French would win their third European title, but that the Danes would collapse in much the same way they did in the World Championship final in Spain last year!? France pulled away with a 13-4 lead en route to a 23-16 half-time result. At that point, they had scored 23 goals on 26 shots, whereas the Danish attack looked desperate and unimaginative. The second half saw France play tactically smart, keeping the lead to between six and ten goals. In the end, all the back-up players got their chance to be on the court, and the result was 41-32 at the final whistle.

Referees in the final were Raluy/Sabroso from Spain, who had their international break-through three years ago when handling the World Championship final in Sweden. As I saw a former colleague put it in an interview: “they may not make fewer mistakes than other couples, but their style and personality make them more convincing”. Yes, a big part of the referee job is indeed to ‘sell’ your ability and your decisions!

In terms of qualifying for the World Championship in Qatar 2015, all the four teams in the medal games are now qualified. Nine slots remain for Europe, and in the draw for the ‘one-on-one’ qualification battles we got some really intriguing match-ups! The referees will really come under pressure in many cases. What do you think about Poland vs. Germany, or Greece vs. FYR Macedonia, or Hungary vs. Slovenia, and even Russia vs. Lithuania!? The other games may not be such ‘hot potatoes’ from a geopolitical standpoint, but there are no really easy ones among Austria-Norway, Romania-Sweden, Serbia-Czech Rep., Montenegro-Belarus, and Bosnia/Herzegovina-Iceland.

Africa

In Africa, the outcome was, if anything, even more predictable in terms of qualifying for the 2015 World Championships. Perhaps it was not so obvious that Algeria’s men would come out of top, ahead of Tunisia and Egypt, but surely these were the three favorites. Angola was the remaining semi-finalist. Among the women, we will see exactly the same three representatives from Africa in the 2015 World Championship as in 2013. But it may have been a bit of a surprise that Tunisia would be the winner, ahead of Dem. Rep. of Congo and Angola. The key here was a dramatic overtime win in the semifinal for Tunisia over Angola. The home team Algeria was the remaining semi-finalist.

PODCAST: Interview with Handball Commentator, Paul Bray

Posted on January 23, 2014 by John Ryan

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 13:09 — 6.0MB)

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Paul Bray, the dean of English language handball commentators

If you’ve been watching the European Handball Championships online you’ve surely heard commentator Paul Bray’s distinct voice and delivery. You may not be aware, though, that Paul has been a handball commentator now for 25 years. Back in 2007 at the Handball World Championship in Germany I sat down to discuss his handball background and how he got started as a handball commentator. We also talked a bit about the then nascent development of handball online web streaming. Six years later with every match of the European Championships coming through with pretty high quality video and English commentary Paul’s predictions have come true. (Interview is 13 minutes)

Side note: On many occasions in the past I’ve chastised the EHF for making it very difficult for fans to access on demand matches without first learning the outcome of the matches. Dead giveaways in the past have included pictures with smiling players being interviews and trophy hoisting celebrations. So far, with the nondescript Youtube channel it’s been fairly easy for a fan like me who can’t watch matches live to remain oblivious to the outcome prior to watching. (Yes, in my little world I’ve got some key final main round matches to watch yet.) Intended or not, thanks for doing this and here’s hoping there isn’t a change in the current posting strategy.

Euro 2014 Full length matches and highlights (on demand): Link

EURO 2014: All set for the main round without major surprises

Posted on January 17, 2014 by Christer Ahl

The Serbs can only watch when the French knock them out of the event

The preliminary group matches have now been completed and we can look ahead to the more interesting part of the event. Yes, there were some last-minute fights to avoid the fourth place in the groups and an early departure for home. But at the top of each group, with maximum points brought forward to the main round, we find the four favorites Denmark, Spain, France and Croatia.

Denmark had a relatively easy time, while it was a more close call among the other three teams in the group. However, from the outset it became clear that the Czech team really was not up to the level of its golden days some decades ago. By contrast, the Austrians confirmed the observations from recent months that the have made good progress. In the neighboring group, the reigning world champions from Spain were dominant. Iceland show the effect of missing some key players, and Hungary also failed to impress, but on balance both these teams were strong enough to hold off a very young Norwegian team.

Group C had France as the favorites, but the many injuries and new players on the team had made some observers speculate about a possible surprise. But the French seemed solid (and even had nicer uniforms than the traditional ones…) and won all their games. In my preview I described Russia as the team to watch out for, and their new generation of players with a modern style coach came through, at the expense of the Serbs who were very pale compared with when the played for the home crowd. To nobody’s surprise, Croatia and Sweden were the top teams in group D, with the Croats coming out on top. Belarus managed to beat Montenegro in the game for the final place in the main round.

It is now easy to believe that the four group winners, starting out with four points each, will also be the favorites for the places in the semi-finals. The key games Denmark-Spain and France-Croatia come right at the beginning of the main round. But even the loser in the Denmark-Spain game should be able to hold off the other teams in the group. And it is difficult to imagine that Sweden or Poland should be able to displace the loser from the France-Croatia game. So while the games may be more even and interesting in the main round, chances are that the fight for the semi-final spots will not be so exciting.

The referee performances have been a bit uneven so far. Some of the veteran couples have been unconvincing and some of the couples whose nominations seemed marginal have not been able to justify their nomination. It has been a bit frustrating to see that some decisions seem to come in ‘autopilot’ fashion, without the necessary ability to distinguish between serious fouls and smaller infractions which are exaggerated through ‘theater’ by the ‘victim’.

African Championships – Men and Women

Posted on January 14, 2014 by Christer Ahl

The competition in Algeria is about to start

While handball Europe is focused on EURO 2014 which just got underway, the African continent will start its championship tournaments in Algeria on January 16. This event, which is the 21st of its kind, combines the men’s and women’s competition and serves as Africa’s qualifying event for the World Championships in 2015 (hosted by Qatar for men and Denmark for women).

The African continental handball federation (CAHB) has 50 members, but only about a dozen of these countries tend to take part in the continental championships; the remaining ones participate in regional African competitions and in the African component of the IHF Challenge Trophy. This time there are 12 participants on the men’s side and eight among the women. The groups in the preliminary round are:

Men A: Tunisia, Egypt, Senegal, Cameroon, Gabon and Libya
Men B: Algeria, Morocco, Angola, Congo, Dem. Rep. of Congo and Nigeria
Women A: Algeria, Dem. Rep. of Congo, Cameroon and Senegal
Women B: Angola, Tunisia, Congo and Guinea

Among the women, we have the recent participants in the World Championships in the form of Angola (16th place), Tunisia (17th), and Dem .Rep of Congo (20th). It seems that the only teams which could prevent those three from qualifying yet again in 2015 are the host country Algeria and Cameroon.

On the men’s side, the question is likely to be the perennial one: can anyone else prevent the medal round from turning into a ‘North African Championship’. For the continent’s sake, it would probably be a good thing if this trend could be broken. The best chances for that would seem to rest with Angola and Congo, who might have the strength to knock off Morocco in group B.

EURO 2014: What are YOUR predictions?

Posted on January 9, 2014 by Christer Ahl

Yes, Denmark is the right place for this kind of event!

On many earlier occasions, John Ryan and I have taken turns ‘sticking our necks out’ and offering predictions for the outcome of major events. This time we want to give YOU the chance to demonstrate your expertise and ability to predict what will happen!

EURO 2014 for men starts in Denmark on Sunday. The format is the now traditional one with four groups of four teams each. Two groups (in Herning and Aalborg) will play Sunday-Tuesday-Thursday, and two groups (in Aarhus and Copenhagen) will play Monday-Wednesday-Friday. Then in the main round, the top three from the Herning group will play the top three from the Aalborg group, with the same system for the top three from the Aarhus and Copenhagen groups.

The composition of the groups is: A/Herning: Denmark, Czech Republic, FYR Macedonia and Austria; B/Aalborg: Spain, Iceland, Hungary and Norway; C/Aarhus: Serbia, France, Poland and Russia; D/Copenhagen: Croatia, Sweden, Belarus and Montenegro. Yes, you have spotted it: Germany did not qualify for this event, and Slovenia is another prominent absentee.

One factor that could be important for the predictions is the unusual number of injuries and last-minute adjustments to the teams. Some other players who used to be key members of their teams have retired since last time. For instance, the French team may be particularly vulnerable for this reason. But it also means that we have the hope of seeing some emerging stars coming to the forefront. And which countries have the deepest talent pools?

It is difficult to imagine that Denmark is not in a good position to compete for the medals. They will have an enormous support of the spectators and the entire country. Moreover, they start out in what may seem to be the weakest group. Iceland is a team with many question marks, and it is tough to anticipate which team will fail to advance from group B. Group C may be the most difficult one to predict. Russia may be the ‘dark horse’ here. Croatia is probably seen by many as the favorite in group D, and here the team that seems to give the ‘experts’ the headaches in Sweden. Will the Swedes be a serious contender or are they destined for a let-down?

Well, I will stop there and ask YOU: who will be number 1, 2, 3 and 4 in this event? Who will be offer the biggest positive surprise, and who will be the negative surprise? Who will win be the Most Valuable Player, and who will win the scoring title? I cannot offer any fancy prices: the competition is just for the honor…

Sochi – ten awkward questions

Posted on January 3, 2014 by Christer Ahl

Is this the right environment for the Olympic Games?

No, do not worry; you have not missed out on any late-breaking news. Handball is not being moved to the Winter Olympics. But I figured that, as sports fans, you are still taking some interest in what will happen in Sochi, where events will get underway a month from now. Perhaps you will follow the overall medal count, or you may wonder if USA or Canada will have a chance to take the icehockey gold medals away from Russia? (The right answer is of course that Sweden will beat them all in icehockey…!)

Personally I had to get up to speed quickly on issues related to Sochi a couple of months ago, when I was suddenly ‘asked’ to take on the task of introducing the topic of Sochi and chairing a panel debate, during the Play the Game conference in Denmark. This meant getting ready to manage a dialog on topics such as the following. Please be forewarned, I will basically leave it up to you to answer the questions!

—Was it right that Russia got the Winter Olympics? Most people recognize that Russia has the capacity and is a country with great traditions in winter sports. But we know that the host country gets a great chance to ‘make propaganda’. And it does seem a bit awkward that these days we see mostly countries run by dictators, oligarchs and oil sheikhs in contentions as hosts. On the other hand, who is really in a position to disqualify others, and what potential hosts would be left if we applied very tough criteria?

—But why did they choose Sochi as the site? Unless you can read the mind of President Putin, you may not find a clear answer. The fact that Stalin once had a ‘dacha’ here cannot be the only reason. Sochi is one of the least winter-like sites in the entire country, and it seems that better alternatives would exist. But if propaganda is a factor, then one can see why Putin would feel that Sochi offers a comfortable and attractive setting that should impress the visitors and the TV viewers. And there is no risk for frost-bite!

—Can we expect that the venues for the competitions will be first-rate? This is probably one of the most positive aspects. Assuming that buildings do not collapse due to shoddy construction, everything will be brand new and intended to meet the highest standards. The competition sites are split into two clusters, not far from each other, so transportation should not be a problem either. The Athletes Village seems to have passed inspection with flying colors.

—Did Sochi really have the infrastructure to make it an easy site? Here the answer is clear. Essentially everything has had to be built and provided from scratch, such as roads, railways, airports, power supply, technological capacity, hotels and other facilities for the tourists. Normally, this would be a big negative for a candidate, as the IOC is generally quite concerned about such huge expenditure and the risk that things will not be finished on time.

—Does this not set the stage for major cost over-runs and corruption? These tend to be problem areas for most Olympic hosts, but in Russia it has been much worse than ever. Part of it is the normal level of corruption in the country. But we have the added issue that it is a huge matter of prestige for Putin to finish all projects on time, when everything had to be built. He will not care that the cost overrun is 500% and that half of the money goes into the pockets of people, as long as it is ready by February 6.

—What about reports of mistreatment of the workers? It is hard to know if things are worse than elsewhere in Russia, or in Qatar for the World Cup, as human rights observers have not had much access. The conditions look fine on paper, but if wages are not paid, if the hours are doubled to meet deadlines, if safety measures are non-existent, and proper health care and insurances are lacking, then reports of ‘slave labor’ may not be exaggerated. It is the principle that ‘the end justifies the means’.

—What about security concerns? The good news is that Russia has vast expertise and resources for both heavy-handed and sophisticated efforts. But the bad news is that different ethnic groups and terrorist outfits are beginning to show their intentions to use the Olympics as a target or at least an occasion. It is awkward to know that Sochi is situated not far from known danger zones in the North Caucasus, but it may be of some consolation that the Sochi area might be relatively easy to isolate and protect. There is security zone of 1500 square miles, where nobody without credentials gets in.

—Can one believe that freedom of the press will exist? This is of course in issue in Russia also in normal circumstances, both for Russian media and for foreigners. At my conference, a key Russian participant was from RIA Novosti, the main Russian news agency. But this agency no longer exists. It has been replaced by what looks like a propaganda machine. And it is feared that foreign media will be carefully monitored and restricted beyond a very narrow reporting from the sports events.

—So what about the atmosphere for the athletes and the spectators? It is likely that the legitimate security concerns will become an excuse for managing both athletes and spectators very carefully. The Russians will try to make the security presence less obvious, but monitoring of communications and movements is expected to be part of the picture. I have experienced tough security measures at several Olympic Games, but not to the extent that it has had a negative effect on the atmosphere and the Olympic camaraderie. Here one can have serious doubts, but we will just have to wait and see.

—Will the issue of the new, strict anti-gay laws in Russia have a major impact? Clearly, the IOC has handled this issue very poorly. Russian reassurances have just been taken at face value, and the IOC had claimed that there is no breach of the Olympic Charter. Much will depend on whether any groups or individuals will endeavor to use the event for explicit demonstrations in one direction or the other, well beyond the U.S. gesture of including prominent gay and lesbian ex-athletes in the official delegation. One would think that, after all the attention the issue has had, the Russian authorities will go out of their way to avoid provocations, but the issue has become so full of prestige that it is hard to know.