tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-195528322024-03-08T11:32:16.868+00:00British Handball NewsUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger334125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-25144933386496596452012-06-15T12:03:00.001+01:002012-06-15T12:04:03.114+01:00GB Men Battle in Euro 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTi34yGsqSLTIELKNnKLTOkE7odxQF30-VvV3DTrTdLm_PfxX7RuZiQA6KIQqRW_GWDc1GoOlRX_pQV3ujRrKzgOmFl-szolqoMNQv1DO3zefhZ-GZPCL6nIH4ymo0hIrakD4/s1600/Steven+Larsson,+by+Michael+Barnett.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTi34yGsqSLTIELKNnKLTOkE7odxQF30-VvV3DTrTdLm_PfxX7RuZiQA6KIQqRW_GWDc1GoOlRX_pQV3ujRrKzgOmFl-szolqoMNQv1DO3zefhZ-GZPCL6nIH4ymo0hIrakD4/s1600/Steven+Larsson,+by+Michael+Barnett.JPG" /></a>GREAT Britain Men made good use of their matches in the qualifying group of the 2014 European Championship, putting on three good performances against strong opposition as their preparations for this summer’s Olympic Games continued.</div>
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The team, who travelled to Italy for the three matches straight from a three-week training camp in Serbia, got stronger as they went on, and only narrowly lost their last two matches, against Greece and Italy.<br />
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Steven Larsson once again proved Great Britain’s top scorer with 18 goals over the three games, while Chris Mohr and Gawain Vincent both scored 13.<br />
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GB opened the tournament with a tough clash against eventual group winners Switzerland, and after a good first half which ended with GB only four goals behind at 12-16, they went down 21-38.<br />
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Against Greece the following day, GB proved stronger in the second half. But having been 13-21 down at the break they couldn’t quite claw their way back, but did win the second period 17-14 to narrow the deficit to 30-35.<br />
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Finally, GB took on Italy, the team they beat during their tournament in Loughborough last year. But on home turf the Italians proved a tough opponent.<br />
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Nevertheless, GB battled well and were not overawed. 11-14 down at half time, they matched their hosts goal for goal in the second half and ended up losing narrowly 26-29.<br />
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* GB men now enter a vital phase of their Olympic preparations.<br />
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Players have now returned home to their families for a short break where they will also focus on individual fitness programmes.<br />
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They return to Serbia on June 25 for more intensive training and will take on the Serbian Under-21 side on June 30, as well as playing the Hungarian national side on July 12.<br />
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From Serbia the team will head to the Team GB holding camp at Loughborough University on July 16 where they will join up with the GB Women’s team and athletes from other sports before heading to the Olympic Village on July 23. They will then have one last friendly match against Serbia on July 26 before the Olympic tournament begins.<br />
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* Photo by Michael Barnett<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-31335442488627277982012-06-14T15:59:00.002+01:002012-06-14T15:59:45.936+01:00GB Women in Spanish Test<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCO42DqQT7nzUrLhbiiGPeXXhoSk5WFwvYWHh23hxrTn87XzmDemp-wC7-n5UjW5c5lY50zsRphwunXZfK7mWvzVIwInbVtlVXudC2864k4R-9y8AeSwdlvOnOLc31iZ90JzY/s1600/GBRvsFinland-85.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCO42DqQT7nzUrLhbiiGPeXXhoSk5WFwvYWHh23hxrTn87XzmDemp-wC7-n5UjW5c5lY50zsRphwunXZfK7mWvzVIwInbVtlVXudC2864k4R-9y8AeSwdlvOnOLc31iZ90JzY/s1600/GBRvsFinland-85.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain Women gained valuable experience of a different style of handball when they played in the Copa de les Naciones hosted by the Catalonia, Galacia and Basque Country handball federation last week.</div>
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GB played in the same event last year, but showed just how much they have improved by reaching the final of this year’s event. They lost by just one goal in a hotly-contested final against Galicia which put the local referees under a lot of pressure.<br />
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After arriving on Friday Great Britain played a friendly match against a local Second Division side which they easily won 35-23 to give themselves a boost ahead of the Tournament. The victory came despite several key players being rested, and gave others in the squad chance to shine.<br />
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Great Britain took on Catalunia in their opening match and won ten goals with Britt Goodwin and Lyn Byl playing particularly well.<br />
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After a strong start GB were 7-2 ahead in the final against Galicia with Marie Gerbron playing superbly, but their rivals fought back to level at half time.<br />
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The match continued to be closely fought, but in the end the local team won by one goal – however, GB took great heart from their performance.<br />
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“We had problems one on one in defence, and also missed too many 100 per cent chances,” said Head Coach Jesper Holmris. “It’s a massive disappointment that we couldn't win the tournament but it was really good for us to play the Spanish style of handball and was good preparation for us.”<br />
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GB captain Lynn McCafferty (pictured) was voted as best player of the tournament.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-53752193834512158762012-06-07T10:22:00.000+01:002012-06-07T10:22:03.593+01:00Serbian preparation for GB Men<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizz9UUGvqkzkquZkSLJQEiFIfVNToQHgVB0Vfqm4kjWM5xs_MFI9C3n0iWW_9heEv56IAm4_waLKwaBX8_Q-WfbWqy4DAKlofiPFGss-9wEwGyExJ19aqWoxfb_y73iJ7z_Ic/s1600/Img_0063.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizz9UUGvqkzkquZkSLJQEiFIfVNToQHgVB0Vfqm4kjWM5xs_MFI9C3n0iWW_9heEv56IAm4_waLKwaBX8_Q-WfbWqy4DAKlofiPFGss-9wEwGyExJ19aqWoxfb_y73iJ7z_Ic/s1600/Img_0063.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain Men warmed up for their Euro 2014 qualifying matches this weekend with a three-week training camp in the Serbian mountains.<br /><br />The tough preparations, which are also geared to getting the team ready for this summer’s Olympic Games in London, put the squad through some gruelling strength and conditioning drills under the watchful eye of coaches Dragan Djukic and Bill Baillie.<br /><br />Based in Kopaonik, the team have played two training games against top Serbian League teams which gave them the chance to give all 22 players in the squad a run-out and stake their claim for a place in the 14-man squad for Euro 2014 and the Olympics.<br /><br />"We have been based at the Serbian football federations new training centre at Stara Pazova since 2nd June,” said Baillie. “The facilities have been excellent and we have completed all the testing with the Serbian institute of Sport.<br /><br />“We’re looking forward to the Euro 2014 qualification, this is a tough group with all four teams looking for a result.<br /><br />"We have no injury concerns and will travel to Italy with 16 players, all players have been showing steady improvement and the staff and players are looking forward to the opener against Switzerland on the 8th June.”<br /><br />"The training regime implemented in Serbia included long distance orienteering challenges of up to 15 kilometres through the forests and mountains. They also cut thick logs into set lengths, built transportable structures to be carried 500 metres up the mountain, and even tried local folk dancing!<br /><br />Great Britain begin their Euro 2014 campaign on Friday with a match against Switzerland at 1745 local time. They then take on Greece at the same time on Saturday before playing hosts Italy at 2030 on Sunday.<br /><br /> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy0DyfvUhb5b5N8tYqeBa-4PnEGsA6UV5wQJFafuDheAUZfHaNxq6lBzcsO0YGgvJqmJYPe39rdhzW3eJV72wDFeicpzp0sGOx1UX5AgHoQ43KAwAAD2GqSgj1dER0fheOC_I/s1600/GB+Men+in+Serbia.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjy0DyfvUhb5b5N8tYqeBa-4PnEGsA6UV5wQJFafuDheAUZfHaNxq6lBzcsO0YGgvJqmJYPe39rdhzW3eJV72wDFeicpzp0sGOx1UX5AgHoQ43KAwAAD2GqSgj1dER0fheOC_I/s1600/GB+Men+in+Serbia.JPG" /></a></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-45129805500795779922012-06-05T11:27:00.002+01:002012-06-05T11:27:40.151+01:00On-form GB battle well against Russia<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyS_l5Dww7H7sSbv-tF82gfIbibxST7BS8DOZ4gt2rzJ7MpEtAoeUAgh5K5bv2GR4x0iKYciY_cbSdcyI5KV6PlcrsaFd-Jn3mQ7m7XMRqbaKo-r7CljMBLbWmslvLQKLxTx8/s1600/GBR+v+MNE+260.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyS_l5Dww7H7sSbv-tF82gfIbibxST7BS8DOZ4gt2rzJ7MpEtAoeUAgh5K5bv2GR4x0iKYciY_cbSdcyI5KV6PlcrsaFd-Jn3mQ7m7XMRqbaKo-r7CljMBLbWmslvLQKLxTx8/s1600/GBR+v+MNE+260.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain Women completed their Euro 2012 qualification campaign on a high, causing hosts Russia problems for much of the game in Togliatti before going down 31-22.</div>
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Russia are one of the top five handballing nations in the world and have been drawn to meet GB again in the Olympics, but Jesper Holmris and his side proved a match for them once again, despite having 3,000 partisan Russian fans packed into the arena.<br />
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GB only lost the home leg at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre by eight goals, and Russia were expected to put in a much-improved performance in their home match.<br />
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However, they were only 16-11 ahead at half time, and the GB defence continued to frustrate them and Russia only won by nine goals.<br />
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Marie Gerbron (pictured) top-scored for GB with six goals, while Holly Lam-Moores added four.<br />
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“It was a fantastic GB performance,” said Head Coach Jesper Holmris.<br />
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“It was a very motivated Russian team with all their best players available who started the game, but Sarah Hargreaves also had a great start to the game saving three 100 per cent chances which helped GB close the gap to 6-3.<br />
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“The rest of the first half we played really disciplined in attack and created good opportunities both against their 6:0 and 5:1 defence.<br />
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“With two minutes left of the first half and a man up we really had the chance to level the score but instead Russia scored twice and the first half ended 16-11.<br />
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“The second half was really positive in the way that we stuck to our game plan, we did not run out of steam and we scored more goals on fast breaks than Russia.<br />
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“All players contributed to a really strong GB performance against one of the best teams in the world.”<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-59722291892203112202012-05-31T15:40:00.001+01:002012-06-01T10:29:47.431+01:00GB Women show promise in final home match before Olympics<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoOXiaIH-XhAMzDXwe6lpXoZasIzCGsMqKezbN4VWwGN4V1zP91RXvObBgDoeO0aPeDcrSM1absQ48oNponaVgPzIDdOkcImq0oJyoMOm731v_eZyCvLunamyzzG9btfSv05U/s1600/Lyn+Byl+shoots,+photo+by+Ian+Hebden+-+small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoOXiaIH-XhAMzDXwe6lpXoZasIzCGsMqKezbN4VWwGN4V1zP91RXvObBgDoeO0aPeDcrSM1absQ48oNponaVgPzIDdOkcImq0oJyoMOm731v_eZyCvLunamyzzG9btfSv05U/s320/Lyn+Byl+shoots,+photo+by+Ian+Hebden+-+small.jpg" width="195" /></a>A STRONG first half performance from Great Britain women was not enough for them to overcome the challenge of Montenegro at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre in London in their final competitive home match before the Olympic Games.</div>
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GB were trailing by just two goals at 12-14 at half time in their penultimate Euro 2012 qualification match on Wednesday evening, but couldn’t maintain their early pressure and as the visitors – who included many from the Champions League winning Buducnost side - ran out 22-37 winners.<br />
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Five goals from Lyn Byl (pictured) made her GB’s top scorer, while Ewa Palies and Marie Gerbron added three each, but it was a strong defensive effort from Great Britain which caused Montenegro such problems before the break.<br />
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However, GB couldn’t sustain their effort, and Katarina Bulatovic ended as the match’s best scorer with nine, while Biljana Pavicevic added eight.<br />
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“It was a very good first half and it was the best we can play,” said Head Coach Jesper Holmris. “But we need more performances like the first half because I am not happy with the second half.<br />
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“A few of our key players ran out of steam and we made too many technical mistakes, and at this level teams like Montenegro will punish you.”<br /><br />GB Women now travel to Russia for their final Euro 2012 match, and will be looking to put in a good performance against a side they are due to meet in the Olympics.<br />
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* Before the match, Holmris had taken part in the draw for the 2012 Olympic Handball Tournament, which set his team against Angola, Brazil, Croatia, Russia and Montenegro.<br />
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The Great Britain men’s team were drawn in what is widely seen as a tougher group, which includes Tunisia, Argentina, Iceland, Sweden and France.<br />
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With the draw having been made, the fixtures for the Olympic Handball Tournament will be confirmed shortly, but GB women look set to start on July 28 with a game against Montenegro (7.30pm), while GB men will start the next day, July 29, against France (7.30pm start).<br />
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* Photo: Ian Hebden.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-40302154140324950082012-05-24T17:34:00.001+01:002012-05-24T17:34:12.298+01:00GB Women preparing for Montenegro challenge<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoqNNoewUg1XXyKVvD9aL5h1j5X2FoeDgAtX5X9_hmU6dgK_Om1Ck2X_0sYSfRorp6jUk9pzsuW3aPYnQ1ZJeZBYsYQ9zHgFEoZLmpXVYUnJjCuo9nyluUIgD8360Kp8q-hWo/s1600/Great%252520Britain%252520vs%252520Russia-337.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoqNNoewUg1XXyKVvD9aL5h1j5X2FoeDgAtX5X9_hmU6dgK_Om1Ck2X_0sYSfRorp6jUk9pzsuW3aPYnQ1ZJeZBYsYQ9zHgFEoZLmpXVYUnJjCuo9nyluUIgD8360Kp8q-hWo/s1600/Great%252520Britain%252520vs%252520Russia-337.jpg" /></a>SOME tickets are still available for the Euro 2012 clash between Great Britain Women and Montenegro at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre on Wednesday.</div>
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The penultimate match of Great Britain’s qualifying campaign, it will provide the team with vital top-level match experience ahead of this summer’s London Olympics.<br />
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The team have played Holland twice in friendly fixtures recently as well as Hungarian and Danish domestic teams, which will have given the team an edge which could help them give Montenegro a run for their money in Wednesday’s match, which begins at 7pm.<br />
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Prior to the match, the draw for the Olympic handball tournament will take place with officials from the International Handball Federation, London 2012 and Team GB present to oversee proceedings.<br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-76600189434443948432012-05-24T17:32:00.004+01:002012-05-24T17:32:57.043+01:00GB Men enter final Olympic preparation phase<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYTaXuAX_Lt1RLYvlrJpefxOfd3O9-StSwk3604seg0XfjiUjPh7MjBNyx1hgbfs_okIFVL6UI6JkAckCSagEfkk3NQNbYxkXL9jpxP4wQm2lRH_WfeCXStjsc9hqZWH3U2CM/s1600/4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYTaXuAX_Lt1RLYvlrJpefxOfd3O9-StSwk3604seg0XfjiUjPh7MjBNyx1hgbfs_okIFVL6UI6JkAckCSagEfkk3NQNbYxkXL9jpxP4wQm2lRH_WfeCXStjsc9hqZWH3U2CM/s1600/4.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain men’s handball team have begun the final preparation phase of their journey to the London 2012 Olympic Games, and now have a series of camps and competitions.</div>
<br />Currently in Serbia for two weeks, the squad will be focusing on strength and conditioning for the first period before taking on some top domestic competition is friendly fixtures.<br />
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From there they will travel to Italy to take part in the four-team qualifying group of the 2014 European Championships. They will face the hosts Italy as well as Switzerland and Greece in their group.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5VPElSFrlnMAPKkdqhB9ctEijSPi2F26j4L8ZNS6b5TgXBU_Gq2Etk6_RJRmQC3eL6_GPIBM2G5qn-v-VTP1xMI3LJg1Md1dJN4G_5ATFBQqr7uiJZY8TdbV6XXGckR98p0k/s1600/1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5VPElSFrlnMAPKkdqhB9ctEijSPi2F26j4L8ZNS6b5TgXBU_Gq2Etk6_RJRmQC3eL6_GPIBM2G5qn-v-VTP1xMI3LJg1Md1dJN4G_5ATFBQqr7uiJZY8TdbV6XXGckR98p0k/s1600/1.jpg" /></a><br />
While in Serbia, the team will undergo a series of gruelling tests and drills under the watchful eye of Serbian Head Coach Dragan Djukic and his team of specialist coaches, all of which are designed to leave the team in optimum shape to be competitive with the best teams in the world at this summer’s Olympic Games.<br /><br /><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-52235206309617845592012-05-17T09:53:00.001+01:002012-05-17T11:25:16.445+01:00Narrow defeat for GB Women in Holland<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia0hh8oOKOn_zE4ztJN4ag4iKDIF4C0SzzilViaoYn3zmmMyRjpjuMmws8p9C9CaJXu3W4cbqTV0x830pC1kpxEJoAfVG4NROLOoc58MrWCZVf7IGPkPWqs288xj8Blz2As7E/s1600/Fudge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia0hh8oOKOn_zE4ztJN4ag4iKDIF4C0SzzilViaoYn3zmmMyRjpjuMmws8p9C9CaJXu3W4cbqTV0x830pC1kpxEJoAfVG4NROLOoc58MrWCZVf7IGPkPWqs288xj8Blz2As7E/s1600/Fudge.jpg" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia0hh8oOKOn_zE4ztJN4ag4iKDIF4C0SzzilViaoYn3zmmMyRjpjuMmws8p9C9CaJXu3W4cbqTV0x830pC1kpxEJoAfVG4NROLOoc58MrWCZVf7IGPkPWqs288xj8Blz2As7E/s1600/Fudge.jpg"></a>GREAT Britain Women came within one goal of beating 2012 European Championship finalists Holland in a friendly fixture played in Geleen on Wednesday.</div>
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Six goals each from Kathryn Fudge and Marie Gerbron helped underpin the great performance, while Zoe Van Der Weel scored four and Kelsi Fairbrother and Lyn Byl added three each. And there was a good 44 per cent save ratio from the GB goalkeepers.<br />
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The second of two matches, GB looked sharp and their performance was a world away from the one they put on 24 hours earlier when they lost convincingly to the same side having arrived in the country just hours earlier.<br />
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The latest in a series of friendly fixtures, the match was just one of the ways the team are preparing for this summer’s Olympic Games in London.<br />
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<span style="font-family: Calibri;"></span></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-36753117109652088222012-04-25T16:03:00.002+01:002012-04-25T16:04:02.596+01:00British Handball team up with CSC<span lang="EN-GB"></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivHxsY9dk0Lg8dQp6DYBTYIMziDvejXlX02iPAAhd1oz8bNhxQRoK6-hTyM9dm0XLgsbbNtxB4h_oP2rjaVoVZRv_ye6yHUPvOJDPmPE4zf0fO6hqODQf-vtND8wOVyFhNXaw/s1600/CSC.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivHxsY9dk0Lg8dQp6DYBTYIMziDvejXlX02iPAAhd1oz8bNhxQRoK6-hTyM9dm0XLgsbbNtxB4h_oP2rjaVoVZRv_ye6yHUPvOJDPmPE4zf0fO6hqODQf-vtND8wOVyFhNXaw/s1600/CSC.jpg" /></a></div>
BRITISH Handball has teamed up with Capital Shopping Centres (CSC) to spread some handball love throughout the country this spring!<br />
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CSC has signed up as British Handball’s official location partner for a national tour of British Handball’s mobile shooting arena, which gives members of the public the chance to try their hand at throwing a handball into a goal – and win some top prizes!<br />
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The tour will take in seven CSC shopping centres across the country, and each will see Great Britain athletes in attendance to tell the public what a great sport handball is.<br />
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The tour will be taking place across seven CSC centres, including:<br />
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Victoria Centre, Nottingham – Saturday 28th April<br />
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Broadmarsh, Nottingham – Sunday 29th April<br />
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The Trafford Centre, Manchester – Friday 4th May<br />
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Eldon Square, Newcastle – Saturday 12th May<br />
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Metrocentre, Gateshead – Sunday 13th May <br />
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Lakeside, Thurrock – Saturday 26th May<br />
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The Glades, Bromley – Sunday 27th May<br />
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The UK tour will also incorporate visits to local schools in Nottingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Glasgow and Essex to encourage the next generation of youngsters to take up this fast growing sport.<br />
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Paul Goodwin, British Handball’s Chief Executive, said: "We’re really looking forward to showing the public what handball is all about. It’s a great sport to play and watch, and it’s massive overseas. Our aim is to use the 2012 Olympics to make it more popular in Britain."<br />
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And Richard Bailey, Central Marketing Manager at CSC said, "Being chosen to be the British Handball Association’s official location partner for its tour of the UK highlights the popularity of our shopping centres and the ideal geographic spread of these locations across the country.<br />
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"2012 is such an amazing year for British sport and it will be fantastic to give the local communities surrounding our centres the opportunity to get involved with such a fast growing sport.<br />
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"It is also great to be able to support the British Handball Association and the British Handball team during this key sporting year, so we hope to see lots of out shoppers giving it a go when the tour visits CSC centres across the country over the next month."<br />
</span><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-23609138790127330732012-04-25T16:02:00.000+01:002012-04-27T13:16:39.161+01:00British Handball link-up with Rehband<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31BjXPJqUu_fxiM4HFxsbW5DcdeN3cFikk56Mt9jgXTUj-lo2iHvhSx5yWu41IPlI9_p01XxWz95orX5MWUm-0s0QH-CAfsr7bf0Br1RSZh8RH2ZWJFiw-QZ03ztpXKUjsX0/s1600/rehband_4c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj31BjXPJqUu_fxiM4HFxsbW5DcdeN3cFikk56Mt9jgXTUj-lo2iHvhSx5yWu41IPlI9_p01XxWz95orX5MWUm-0s0QH-CAfsr7bf0Br1RSZh8RH2ZWJFiw-QZ03ztpXKUjsX0/s1600/rehband_4c.jpg" /></a></div>
BRITISH Handball’s preparations for this summer’s Olympic Games has been given a boost after they teamed up with leading sports support supplier Rehband to help power their performance.<br />
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Under the agreement, all British Handball athletes will be provided with Rehband products, which are designed and developed by the company’s in-house expert design team which has extensive experience in the physiotherapy and textile industries.<br />
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Hugely popular in Scandinavia, Rehband are rapidly expanding in other markets across the world and their products are available in more than 25 countries.<br />
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They have a strong portfolio of braces, supports, protection products and functional clothing. The latest addition to the range is a line of Compression Wear, including products with built in protective pads for intensive contact sports.<br />
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Paul Goodwin, British Handball Chief Executive, said: “We’re delighted to be working alongside Rehband as we enter the final stages of preparation for the London Olympics. In any sport the difference between winning and losing can be tiny, so anything we can do that may give us that crucial competitive edge could make all the difference.”<br />
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And Anthony Egan, Sales Director of Rehband UK, added: “'Handball is one of the fastest-growing sports in the UK and will gain great exposure during the London 2012 Olympics. Rehband UK are delighted to be the official supplier to the British Handball Association.”<br /><br />
Fans of British Handball can see for themselves the quality of Rehband products, thanks to a special 30 per cent discount being offered for British Handball members.<br />
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To benefit from this special offer, please go to <a href="http://www.rehbandsport.co.uk/">www.rehbandsport.co.uk</a> and when checking out of their online shop please use the code BHA30.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-39121446239361460482012-04-18T07:49:00.000+01:002012-04-18T07:49:26.154+01:00Handball on track to deliver Olympic legacy<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs1Nm_qCyKuj8sqYd9V5vpu9wZkzISm3NOgEvFCu02hEEuD-NlnnUwZS9RNjQ4Dix5fsG-4JU98-btuOH4ntDevR_G8CNtbLrltjW9a8M87qm0Kjg_eLT-9bB18ZpH5o789j8/s1600/British+Handball.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs1Nm_qCyKuj8sqYd9V5vpu9wZkzISm3NOgEvFCu02hEEuD-NlnnUwZS9RNjQ4Dix5fsG-4JU98-btuOH4ntDevR_G8CNtbLrltjW9a8M87qm0Kjg_eLT-9bB18ZpH5o789j8/s1600/British+Handball.JPG" /></a>THE future of elite handball in Britain took a major step forward this week, after British Handball, England Handball and Scottish Handball agreed a clear pathway for the development of international players.<br />
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Handball is the fastest growing sport in the country at the moment, with tens of thousands of children and young people across the country being introduced to the sport as part of plans to fully harness the potential legacy from the London Olympics.<br />
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But under this new partnership, those young people will now have a clear pathway to follow as they aim to represent their country at European, World and Olympic level.<br />
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The news helps cement handball’s place in Britain’s sporting landscape after 2012, with real long-term plans being made for the future.<br />
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At international level Great Britain teams will play in official European, World and Olympic competitions, while Scotland and England teams will be selected from the Academies and continue to participate in UK and European training camps and tournaments.<br />
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Discussions are ongoing between England Handball, Scottish Handball and the Irish Olympic Handball Association to establish a Home International series from youth level up to seniors.<br />
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Lorraine Brown, British Handball’s Performance Director, said: “It’s fantastic to be working in collaboration with the Home Nations. The work they’ve done over the last two years building a foundation for the game will put us in good stead for the future.<br />
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“To have clarity about what our role will be in the future can only benefit the sport, and this will ensure there is a sustainable system in the future for Rio 2016 and into 2020.”<br />
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And Mike Briers, chairman of England Handball, added: “There is a tremendous influx of new players who are being attracted to the sport of handball. The Player Pathway will offer all of them a real opportunity to progress from junior club players, through the age groups, to GB representation in European, World and Olympic Competitions.”<br />
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And Stephen Neilson from Scottish Handball added: “Scottish players have played a big part in the existing GB teams, and we aim to maximise our involvement in the future. Our system of regular primary and secondary school championships will continue with youth club championships expanding to five age categories next season.”<br />
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And Mick Hegarty, England Handball’s Director of Performance, stated: “These exciting decisions are a positive reflection of how keen both BHA and EHA are to work together to produce podium quality teams in the not too distant future.”<br />
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England Handball’s existing four-year Player Pathway Programme for 9-13-year-olds, which has been growing and developing the talent pool of elite youth players, will be re-branded as the England Talent Pathway (ETP), which will incorporate a network of Regional and National Academies for players from 12-18-years-old.<br />
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Scottish Handball will continue with the building of national age group teams which will now integrate into the Great Britain Performance Programme and define a new four year player pathway strategy starting in 2013 which will be aligned with the Rio Olympic cycle.<br />
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Photo: Michele Davison.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-87364021968648388632012-04-11T12:14:00.000+01:002012-04-11T12:14:13.650+01:00GB Under-20 women in World Champs action<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6GCDKry_UxlNxDDdgEh8lpeh6QzxokKLCQUoArPujMUs5xhWq93r90y6O1GWObx-CsgBcB-CwgNC8TQHHmrIsj04quJ_oWo4ZTf-f3sBbEnWWluGL3pcAOgY4UfSGe-c5F48/s1600/GBW+U20s.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6GCDKry_UxlNxDDdgEh8lpeh6QzxokKLCQUoArPujMUs5xhWq93r90y6O1GWObx-CsgBcB-CwgNC8TQHHmrIsj04quJ_oWo4ZTf-f3sBbEnWWluGL3pcAOgY4UfSGe-c5F48/s1600/GBW+U20s.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain’s newly-formed Under-20 women’s team played their first international matches at the World Championships in Poland last week.<br />
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A young squad went out to play three matches in the European qualification phase of the event, and although they lost all three they learned some valuable lessons.<br />
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Playing Germany, Poland and Italy – who have a centralised program – over three days was a tough call with GB starting well in each of their games, but eventually the power and experience of the other teams came to the fore.<br />
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Coach Donna Hankinson said afterwards: “We knew that we would be facing an almost impossible task, but for us this is the beginning of an ongoing process for this age group, we wanted to expose the players to this level of competition to open their eyes to the work that needs to be done.<br />
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“We set realistic goals and emphasised to the players that the goals were the opposition and not the actual teams that we playing against, and in every game we came within a whisker of meeting our objectives. We came to the tournament with our eyes open and we leave educated and motivated to the task ahead.”<br />
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Danielle Nillsson finished top scorer for GB with a creditable 16 goals over the three matches, while there were outstanding efforts in defence from Heidi Le Blanc and Ellie Whitehead.<br />
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Lorraine Brown, British Handball’s Performance Director, added: “There were some very strong handball nations there, but we scored plenty of goals against them which was fantastic. It was a very difficult tournament for a young squad. The aim for the players and coaches was to learn game by game.<br />
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“The aim was to understand the level the players are aiming for in the next cycle at Under-20 level and to improve on technical faults and game understanding, and they achieved all those internal goals.<br />
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“The coaches gained valuable international experience in their first time coaching at that level, and it was a great opportunity for Charlotte Le Blanc to captain the side and was a good chance for her to develop her leadership skills in a way that she doesn’t get with the senior side.”</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-7283242483843920572012-04-11T11:00:00.001+01:002012-04-12T10:07:55.377+01:00Men's Olympic line-up revealed<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdelxHkko-SE3LsrvdFVOgamv7ZagZFuzp2EOSG0F1KhEDB83nIwwuzUGfUGmseAD6kcJLvw6dpIebaOPrNZLBkS3d8_MBAhS7Tv5GbvaqvczLuDVhBB5RrsCQGR-oZ-xih5Y/s1600/Dragan+Djukic,+April+7+2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdelxHkko-SE3LsrvdFVOgamv7ZagZFuzp2EOSG0F1KhEDB83nIwwuzUGfUGmseAD6kcJLvw6dpIebaOPrNZLBkS3d8_MBAhS7Tv5GbvaqvczLuDVhBB5RrsCQGR-oZ-xih5Y/s1600/Dragan+Djukic,+April+7+2012.jpg" /></a>THE line-up for the men’s Olympic handball competition has been completed after the final qualification tournaments took place last week.</div><br />
Great Britain know who the 11 other teams competing in London will be, although the draw for the group stages won’t happen until May 30 at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre.<br />
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The 12 teams who will compete at London are: Great Britain, France, Spain, Sweden, Croatia, Serbia, Hungary, Iceland, Denmark, Argentina, Korea and Tunisia.<br />
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Dragan Djukic, GB Men’s Head Coach (pictured), said: “This looks like being the best handball event ever!<br />
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“Our target is still to play competitive games, and to be as close as possible to non-European teams. Also to use every single game to promote the fantastic game of handball.<br />
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“Our last game against Korea give us hope to believe that, with spectators behind us, maybe we can make some miracle and take a win. One dream is close to become reality!”<br />
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The line-up for the women’s handball event won’t be known until the qualifying tournaments are completed next month.<br />
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Photo: Michael Barnett<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-60107839786016003562012-04-07T19:00:00.001+01:002012-04-12T10:08:16.361+01:00GB Men give Korea a scare at Pinsent Masons' London Handball Cup<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtC3OmgiIj4z3U4Lw7Z4wDUFzQnl2Vn0nEcalDS9DNG5DawcoUlbE0Fgl-4JQPJwh_uwqzZ3wVNx3da3AH_hxbKSL6lssRr77xNEY0BB_43lGUCCWigg0s7-vFeE7JsCWEeyc/s1600/Steven+Larsson,+Great+Britain+-+small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtC3OmgiIj4z3U4Lw7Z4wDUFzQnl2Vn0nEcalDS9DNG5DawcoUlbE0Fgl-4JQPJwh_uwqzZ3wVNx3da3AH_hxbKSL6lssRr77xNEY0BB_43lGUCCWigg0s7-vFeE7JsCWEeyc/s1600/Steven+Larsson,+Great+Britain+-+small.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain men saved their best performance until last in the Pinsent Masons’ London Handball Cup at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre on Saturday, narrowly losing out to Korea 25-29.</div><br />
After two defeats to world-class Tunisia and Argentina in the first couple of days, GB men turned on the style against the Koreans – none more so than Steven Larsson who used his height and skill in equal measure to score 14 goals for GB.<br />
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GB got better as the tournament went on despite playing against three of the best teams in the world who have qualified by right for the London Olympics this summer.<br />
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The plan for the Pinsent Masons’ London Handball Cup was to give Great Britain experience of playing against the top nations so they can better prepare for this summer’s Olympics. On that score it is very much ‘job done’ with lessons learned, and Great Britain will take heart from their performance against a very strong Korean side.<br />
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Great Britain’s Steven Larsson finished the tournament as top-scorer with 19 goals, while Korea’s Yi-Kyeong Jeong scored a total of 15.<br />
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Tunisia won the event overall with two wins and a draw, while Korea finished second.<br />
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Great Britain men will now begin preparations for the qualification tournament for the 2014 European Championship in Italy from June 8-10, where they will face Switzerland and Greece as well as the host nation.<br />
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<strong><u>Pinsent Masons’ London Handball Cup</u></strong><br />
<strong><u>Results:</u></strong><br />
<strong>April 5:</strong> Tunisia 30 Korea 25, Great Britain 15 Argentina 32.<br />
<strong>April 6:</strong> Korea 31 Argentina 25, Great Britain 15 Tunisia 41.<br />
<strong>April 7:</strong> Argentina 23 Tunisia 23, Great Britain 25 Korea 29.<br />
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Photo: Michael Barnett<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-21454788788153455282012-04-06T14:24:00.002+01:002012-04-06T16:52:53.448+01:00Djukic praises Argentina after GB lose opening clash<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8puoUJHY9tO2XWTVBKKxZ6zB72Rod8A-QMEJkMOtDBUVMisB8NrxDQ7pDs0ZDTxR2lXJ3MNrMLfddPhyphenhyphenx_04h5MmO1ME9IGj1pAmSU2nqou43VTr3RAGkkmYSlNkK-fYbstQ/s1600/GB+v+Arg,+April+5+2012.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8puoUJHY9tO2XWTVBKKxZ6zB72Rod8A-QMEJkMOtDBUVMisB8NrxDQ7pDs0ZDTxR2lXJ3MNrMLfddPhyphenhyphenx_04h5MmO1ME9IGj1pAmSU2nqou43VTr3RAGkkmYSlNkK-fYbstQ/s1600/GB+v+Arg,+April+5+2012.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain Men’s Head Coach Dragan Djukic heaped praise on Argentina’s handball team after seeing his side beaten 15-32 in their opening match of the Pinsent Masons’ London Handball Cup at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre on Thursday.</div><br />
Djukic’s team defended well at times in the face of some world class attacking play by an Argentinian team tipped by some for a medal at this summer’s Olympic Games.<br />
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And in attack Great Britain’s Steven Larsson found the net four times, while Ciaran Williams added three. Ben Murray scored two on his international debut, and Chris Mohr also scored twice.<br />
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Argentina had 11 players on the scoresheet, with Juan Manuel Vazquez their top-scorer with six.<br />
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“This is the first time we’ve played against non-European teams who have already qualified for the Olympics, and they play amazing handball,” said Djukic afterwards. “I’m very happy that we have a chance to play against them now, because we must play them at the Olympics.<br />
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“Because we’ve had the experience to play them now, we will be better at the Olympics.<br />
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“We started both halves too cautiously, and we gave them too much respect. We went 0-7 down before we scored, and in the second half we scored once in 15 minutes.<br />
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In Thursday’s other match Tunisia won 30-25 after a close battle with South Korea.<br />
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Friday’s programme sees Korea take on Argentina at 1630, while Great Britain face Tunisia at 1900.<br />
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And on Saturday, Tunisia v Argentina starts at 1230, while Great Britain v Korea is at 1500.<br />
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Matches will be streamed live at <a href="http://www.britishhandball.com/">www.britishhandball.com</a><br />
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* Photo: Michael Barnett.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-57140498655203866062012-04-04T12:29:00.004+01:002012-04-05T10:51:07.534+01:00World Champs test for GB Women U20s<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">THE new Great Britain under-20 women’s team head to Poland this week to compete in the World Under-20 Championships qualifying tournament.</div><br />
Only recent formed after exhaustive trials, the Under-20 squad will take on hosts Poland, Germany and Italy in Pruszkow, with three matches in three days from April 5-7.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqhQNzbpjbukmb6GUyEEW_CEoUQF9XKimoLC1ViqOgaMCSN1WxShKeLfL1y8qYTw9i6wpywTFI0DoENXQ7RR0IK3X-rLADsRUkuUmoLIGEZui1CC_8YBW7yXd873fPhrO1G_c/s1600/P1010431.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqhQNzbpjbukmb6GUyEEW_CEoUQF9XKimoLC1ViqOgaMCSN1WxShKeLfL1y8qYTw9i6wpywTFI0DoENXQ7RR0IK3X-rLADsRUkuUmoLIGEZui1CC_8YBW7yXd873fPhrO1G_c/s320/P1010431.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
It is the first time a GB team has competed in this tournament, and it will prove to be a baptism of fire for the youngsters.<br />
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The GB team is largely made up of young players who look set to form the next youth and junior two-year programmes.<br />
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Germany are top seeds in the group, although Poland will aim to make the most of home advantage. And Italy have had a special talent programme in place for the past two years which has produced much of their team.<br />
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Great Britain will be aiming to learn from the tournament and be as competitive as possible before coming home to build on their experience.<br />
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The matches are due to be streamed live on the internet via this link - <span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif"; font-size: 10pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB;"><span style="mso-field-code: " HYPERLINK """;"><span class="MsoHyperlink"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12pt;"><u><span style="color: blue;">http://imprezylive.pl/online_pruszkow.php</span></u></span></span></span></span><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-33330674896562102832012-03-29T12:51:00.002+01:002012-03-29T12:51:54.661+01:00Great Britain Men drawn in Euro 2014<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6UXdFxmheIRQRo6uyn-jTNZ-kXF3Ew76WDVC3AmBa4KilAsgI-rWZaw4v0A7_t76FOs2zgsH1XTDaNAzQuPvGNfcohbUHO_KKSnpyUhL6Kh3Kwj8CzbJkLylHGzl46C7op_4/s1600/Men's+Euro+2014+logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6UXdFxmheIRQRo6uyn-jTNZ-kXF3Ew76WDVC3AmBa4KilAsgI-rWZaw4v0A7_t76FOs2zgsH1XTDaNAzQuPvGNfcohbUHO_KKSnpyUhL6Kh3Kwj8CzbJkLylHGzl46C7op_4/s1600/Men's+Euro+2014+logo.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain men will play in the qualifying tournament for the 2014 European Championships in June, as an important part of their preparations for the London 2012 Olympic Games.<br />
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They have been drawn in a four-team group alongside Italy, Switzerland and Greece which will take place from June 8-10. Italy were drawn as host nation, although this has not yet been confirmed.<br />
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Head Coach Dragan Djukic said: “It is the hardest possible draw, and it looks like the perfect opportunity to finish the first part of our Olympic preparation with excellent competitive games.<br />
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“We already played against all three teams (Greece at the beginning of 2009, Swiss in the Yellow Cup 2010 and Italy at home last year), and now it will be interesting to check our progress in last three years.<br />
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“For our players, this is another excellent opportunity to play again some of the world’s best players who play in the best European leagues (German Bundesliga, French League). Swiss players Manuel Liniger (Lemgo) and Andy Schmid (Rhein Neckar Lowen), from Greece there is Vasilakis and Sanakis (Melsungen) and from Italy Michele Skatar (Nantes).<br />
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“We are maybe "outsiders" from the previous results and our handball tradition, but we will try to play all three games on the best possible level and spring some surprises.”</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-59537371957573504022012-03-26T12:27:00.001+01:002012-03-29T13:37:44.335+01:00Tough Test Ahead for Great Britain Men<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKAIsTnkv-4YjNhGtwsRVUGa5pLWDL5d1D1kPVTueTNY54NyPPkrSB4nEenYfjxmlS_Xp38KC4JNHE5OzhqNoKhYKMz_KkS3LgG-P5MfIT2CBcGteO9bAoahJnvImOwhgxJT0/s1600/GB+Men+with+flag.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKAIsTnkv-4YjNhGtwsRVUGa5pLWDL5d1D1kPVTueTNY54NyPPkrSB4nEenYfjxmlS_Xp38KC4JNHE5OzhqNoKhYKMz_KkS3LgG-P5MfIT2CBcGteO9bAoahJnvImOwhgxJT0/s1600/GB+Men+with+flag.jpg" /></a>Great Britain men’s handball team will face some of their toughest opponents yet when they play in next month’s Pinsent Masons’ London Handball Cup.</div><br />
The event will see Great Britain battle with Tunisia, Argentina and South Korea – all of whom have qualified for this summer’s London Olympics – from April 5-7 at Crystal Palace National Sport Centre.<br />
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Head Coach Dragan Djukic said: “This tournament is one of the biggest sport events this year in the handball world and certainly the best handball tournament ever on British soil.<br />
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“The fact that all four teams have already booked their places at the Olympic Games says a lot about the quality of handball. We face the champions of the Asian, African and American continents.<br />
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“For Great Britain, this is a good opportunity for our very young team to meet some of the world’s best teams for the first time, and fight with them on home ground.”<br />
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The schedule for the tournament is - April 5: 1630: Tunisia v Korea, 1900: GB v Argentina. April 6: 1630: Korea v Argentina, 1900: GB v Tunisia. April 7: 1230: Tunisia v Argentina, 1500: GB v Korea.<br />
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Captain Bobby White, 29 and from Milton Keynes, echoed Djukic’s sentiments: “This tournament is going to be a perfect test for us as our preparations for the Olympic Games start to build momentum. Tunisia, Argentina and South Korea have all qualified for London 2012, and what better way to prepare than to play teams that are going to be there.<br />
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“We will be looking to compete well with all three teams, but we will not be worried if results don’t go our way. We will be looking to learn as much about our opponents as possible and put what we learn into action come Games time.”<br />
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And 26-year-old winger Mark Hawkins, from Horsham in Sussex, added: “It is great for handball in this country that we can host tournaments of this nature featuring the continental champions from Asia, America and Africa.<br />
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“Hopefully it is a sign of what is to come in the future and post-2012, to have regular top level international handball being played in the UK.”<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-71352769559243651492012-03-26T10:35:00.000+01:002012-03-26T10:35:52.671+01:00Battling GB Women lose out in Poland<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipp_ZHAbJaSCE6qy-GDC_GSllY6DJUwNQDByxvV-trOWJ8kmRyBgK0F4MD_2SEHnIEjJQZxo5NfI3YcCAOuhjQFXW8VMAI-3OVYktT2G4AQwT4YcrdSp9En02stmXeHkkQCbc/s1600/GB+Women's+Marie+Gerbron+v+Poland,+Mar+22+2012+-+small.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipp_ZHAbJaSCE6qy-GDC_GSllY6DJUwNQDByxvV-trOWJ8kmRyBgK0F4MD_2SEHnIEjJQZxo5NfI3YcCAOuhjQFXW8VMAI-3OVYktT2G4AQwT4YcrdSp9En02stmXeHkkQCbc/s1600/GB+Women's+Marie+Gerbron+v+Poland,+Mar+22+2012+-+small.jpg" /></a>SOME strong periods of play from Great Britain women was not enough to stop them losing out to Poland twice in the last week in the Euro 2012 qualifying tournament.<br />
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Head Coach Jesper Holmris was pleased with his squad’s performances in periods of both matches, but overall it was not enough and GB cannot now reach the finals of the competition.<br />
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Last Thursday’s 33-20 defeat to Poland at Loughborough University saw GB compete well in the first half and they only trailed by two goals at the break. However, Poland stepped up after the break to take the win.<br />
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And the return leg on Sunday evening in Elblag saw GB lose out 29-20, after trailing 16-8 at half time. They were just one goal down mid-way through the first half, only for a bad five minute spell which let Poland in. However, after the break GB were strong again and only lost the final 30 minutes by one goal, 13-12.<br />
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“Sunday’s performance was much better than in Loughborough,” said Head Coach Jesper Holmris. “Unfortunately we had a bad spell in the last six minutes of the first half even though we were a player up.<br />
<br />
“But the second half was very good and very positive. We played very well in attack, and Mayes was fantastic in goal with a 40 per cent save ratio, so she should be very pleased with her performance, and the whole defence too.<br />
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“Poland came out at full speed, they desperately wanted to get a result because goal difference could be crucial if they want to qualify for the finals.<br />
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“Their first half performance was the best I’ve seen them play, and we coped well with it generally.”<br />
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Lyn Byl top-scored for GB in Poland with four goals, while captain Lynn McCafferty and Kathryn Fudge both scored three.<br />
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Great Britain will now return to London for more training sessions, where they will take on club teams from overseas before preparing to entertain Montenegro at Crystal Palace on May 30, and then go to Russia for their final Euro 2012 match on June 3.</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-61522838885130445702012-03-22T17:05:00.003+00:002012-03-22T22:21:07.627+00:00Strong performance from GB Women not enough for victory<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgObulb-CbmPnHpYWaTBVYKeXn8xJpJY1FPB8vUJ34hWisaAKXall9CwZAh82LwBWuvV-7teKAjGDFtywk_wz7CyHdmTe4FHX-3tFCwmLrFdCV3FIG7LovPZXFFZ-T6TgE-paw/s1600/GB%252520vs%252520Russia-60.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgObulb-CbmPnHpYWaTBVYKeXn8xJpJY1FPB8vUJ34hWisaAKXall9CwZAh82LwBWuvV-7teKAjGDFtywk_wz7CyHdmTe4FHX-3tFCwmLrFdCV3FIG7LovPZXFFZ-T6TgE-paw/s320/GB%252520vs%252520Russia-60.jpg" width="181" /></a>A STRONG first half performance from Great Britain women’s handball team was not enough for them to overcome an experienced Poland team at Loughborough University on Thursday.</div><br />
Great Britain lost the 2012 European Championship qualifying match 20-33 after losing ground on their rivals, who only led 8-10 at the break and received a tongue-lashing from their coaching team as a result.<br />
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Kathryn Fudge (pictured) popped up with four goals – many at crucial times for GB which kept them in the hunt – while Zoe Van Der Weel also scored four from the wing.<br />
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“Our defence was very strong, especially in the first half,” said Head Coach Jesper Holmris. “But we have to go back and look at our attack.<br />
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“We don’t need to change our defence – we’ve seen that against many top nations. But when we had two minute suspensions and we’re 6 v 5 on court we struggle to cope.<br />
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“We’re disappointed with the second half. We can’t play our best for 60 minutes and when we have a bad spell they scored so many because we make technical mistakes. But they were more stressed than us, and we will go into Sunday’s second match in Poland with nothing to lose.”<br />
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Great Britain will now return to London to prepare for Sunday’s clash in Elblag.<br />
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Teams:<br />
<br />
Great Britain: Zoe Van Der Weel 4, Kathryn Fudge 4, Marie Gerbron 3, Holly Lam-Moores 2, Nina Heglund 2, Lyn Byl 2, Ewa Palies 2, Jeanett Andersen 1, Amondine Webb, Lynn McCafferty, Britt Goodwin, Kelsi Fairbrother, Yvonne Leuthold, Laura Innes, Charlotte LeBlanc, Jane Mayes.<br />
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Poland: Kinga Polenz 7, Iwona Niedzwiedz 4, Karolina Siodmiak 4, Agnieszka Kocela 4, Malgorzata Stasiak 4, Karolina Kudlacz 3, Katarzyna Koniuszaniec 3, Patrycja Kulwinska 3, Alina Wojtas 1, Agnieszka Wolska, Karolina Zalewska, Hanna Sadej, Karolina Szwed, Karolina Jasinowska, Anna Baranowska, Izabela Czarna.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-90281387505848983632012-03-21T08:56:00.002+00:002012-03-21T08:56:53.835+00:00Holmris Relishing Polish Challenge<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNMBTpzLJx6LrOu6pNXlkSJ5WEEcMeVFYYCrbZxENVazA8iQgubo1d8y8J9rhqz64Dd7TraN_Rp5DD-WvBwDvKNuFt0WuOZ5UQh7Oc0tWYpxh7W09KJI4MwJhyphenhyphenfhQXiCm8FU0/s1600/Jesper+Holmris.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNMBTpzLJx6LrOu6pNXlkSJ5WEEcMeVFYYCrbZxENVazA8iQgubo1d8y8J9rhqz64Dd7TraN_Rp5DD-WvBwDvKNuFt0WuOZ5UQh7Oc0tWYpxh7W09KJI4MwJhyphenhyphenfhQXiCm8FU0/s1600/Jesper+Holmris.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain women’s handball team take on Poland in Loughborough on Thursday, and Head Coach Jesper Holmris is relishing the challenge their latest European Championship clashes present.<br />
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The team has been training hard over the winter, and their successful Olympic Test Event campaign back in November seems a distance memory.<br />
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Holmris and his squad preparing for the double-header against Poland next week with behind-closed-doors friendly matches against world class teams such as Norway and Brazil, and will be going all out to beat Poland and gain even more experience ahead of this summer’s Olympic Games.<br />
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“Since the fantastic test event in the Olympic Arena we have been training really hard, but we have not played many matches during the winter months,” he said.<br />
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“Two narrow defeats against Angola in January have been the only internationals so we are really looking forward to international competition again.”<br />
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Injuries have hit Sarah Hargreaves, Louise Jukes, Holly Lam Moores and Britt Goodwin, but with most players back in full training they’re likely to be 100 per cent fit for the upcoming Poland matches, with the home leg at Loughborough University on Thursday and the return leg in Elblag on Sunday.<br />
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“The two qualification matches against Poland will be very tough competition for us,” added Holmris. “Poland is a very strong and experienced team with some top European back court players (Niedwiedz, Kudladz and Byzdra) leading the way.<br />
<br />
“They have a very solid and well organised defence and the Polish fast break phase has become a threat for all teams. Head coach Kim Rasmussen will also have more options and a more powerful attack with their star player Karolina Kudladz back from injury than last time we played them.<br />
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“We are the underdogs once again, but we will do everything we can to upset a very strong Polish team. We are in good form and expect a very strong performance in front of a sold out home crowd in Loughborough.”</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-10158110570247491912012-03-14T11:22:00.000+00:002012-03-14T11:22:16.589+00:00Successful partner event for British Handball<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy-KyII8FYX8U2bEVzm8cE0LGcTyvxAF9VanuQxiINzu2xQKrpYAqxmppEfoQjMsqzp0_kVlYNEeXpQVnU3ilOprYv_zImagpXKJNxKL6Z7fT2CsTGP9AyjIqC5DlRb1Nz8S4/s1600/P3070341.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgy-KyII8FYX8U2bEVzm8cE0LGcTyvxAF9VanuQxiINzu2xQKrpYAqxmppEfoQjMsqzp0_kVlYNEeXpQVnU3ilOprYv_zImagpXKJNxKL6Z7fT2CsTGP9AyjIqC5DlRb1Nz8S4/s1600/P3070341.jpg" /></a>British Handball held its third and most successful Partner Networking Event yet at the offices of Pinsent Masons in London.<br />
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Over 60 guests attended to hear British Handball's exciting future plans, receive a presentation from LOCOG handball competition manager Alex Gavrilovic and to share partner experiences.<br />
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More than a dozen members of the Great Britain team were in attendance to meet with the partners.<br />
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Pinsent Masons are one of the latest companies to sign up as a British Handball sponsor, and their Head of Sport Trevor Watkins used the opportunity to announce that Pinsent Masons will be the title sponsor of the upcoming four nations International to be held in London 5-7 April. The tournament will be known as the Pinsent Masons' London Handball Cup.<br />
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British Handball CEO Paul Goodwin said that the evening was a great success and that he had received several enquiries from companies wanting to get involved with British Handball as a result of attending the event.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxlRnbJPnwv5ODS6mEe_XC7PFe6dwpKQJI4PojRVHTa3SmkVu3H_ePOVQUBy6BYRWSLH9eHlXn15U7SZuxaPd5JmiUxhKzP9Ne-a1ng9Xu8PlAJWLzVQL-F7EgnDOldZccYpI/s1600/P3070350.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxlRnbJPnwv5ODS6mEe_XC7PFe6dwpKQJI4PojRVHTa3SmkVu3H_ePOVQUBy6BYRWSLH9eHlXn15U7SZuxaPd5JmiUxhKzP9Ne-a1ng9Xu8PlAJWLzVQL-F7EgnDOldZccYpI/s320/P3070350.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-391137881348556092012-03-14T09:56:00.001+00:002012-03-14T11:27:27.871+00:00British Handball sign up with OptimaSport<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFN4vf6DG7i2jIOhNbnRXRKgLswHSULGnFhRftllkQ0GwPTk1ihK0iAskLwnvswKhy-nGSUjLnswqk6Qua2OVSdwBwwrFBMuFfVBFIRHj5N_jbR3CRYQyjQhEpd8AFcU5m6ug/s1600/Optima+Sport+logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFN4vf6DG7i2jIOhNbnRXRKgLswHSULGnFhRftllkQ0GwPTk1ihK0iAskLwnvswKhy-nGSUjLnswqk6Qua2OVSdwBwwrFBMuFfVBFIRHj5N_jbR3CRYQyjQhEpd8AFcU5m6ug/s1600/Optima+Sport+logo.jpg" /></a>BRITISH Handball has given their Olympic preparations a major boost by signing up to use leading sports assessment and tracking system OptimaSport.</div><br />
OptimaSport’s technology is the most advanced of its kind, monitoring multiple biological systems and providing the most detailed reports and data.<br />
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British Handball Strength and Conditioning Coach, Lee Ottey, said: “When I first viewed the kit I was impressed by what it could offer our athletes to help raise their performance. I also liked the fact that the system was non-invasive and produced some great graphics with a wide range of features.”<br />
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The equipment will be integrated into the team’s centralised programme at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre. It will help monitor athletes’ response to training sessions, enabling the coaching staff to track the athletes’ tolerance and stress levels – which in turn will help quantify session specific training loads and to track how an athlete has recovered.<br />
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It will also help to detect under- or overtraining, while fitness testing will enable coaches to gauge individual and team improvements.<br />
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CEO of OptimaSport, John McLaughlin, said: “We are delighted to be working with the British Handball team and hope that our system helps it achieve success at the Olympics. We believe that our systems would benefit a number of other Olympic teams and are excited by the potential to further grow our presence across all sports – and hopefully help Great Britain achieve as strong a medal haul as possible.”<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-45973223496603673752012-03-14T09:53:00.002+00:002012-03-14T20:24:25.808+00:00GB winger Pearce visits school<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihobrUe07On8YQxATxpCayhZHa4_e6iW2Uksh8uNNaZVSBxDAP61yJpS0cZAfv9d5elliWbf89HUlHCQ8eupwalK2ysTkJB2VxWjn3w-cFU7nHtCBqlgY0OyGDDpJ2Lbf-O6U/s1600/Barking+school+pic+3.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihobrUe07On8YQxATxpCayhZHa4_e6iW2Uksh8uNNaZVSBxDAP61yJpS0cZAfv9d5elliWbf89HUlHCQ8eupwalK2ysTkJB2VxWjn3w-cFU7nHtCBqlgY0OyGDDpJ2Lbf-O6U/s1600/Barking+school+pic+3.jpg" /></a>GREAT Britain winger John Pearce helped pupils at All Saints Catholic School in Barking get to grips with the finer points of handball last week when he attended a session at the Essex school.</div><br />
Pearce, 24 and from Dorset, helped Year 7 and 10 pupils with training, and even managed a team in a schools competition – which they duly won!<br />
<br />
He then visited Newham Flames Handball Club in London, and again helped out with training and showed them some of the drills and moves that international handball stars go through.<br />
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Pupils from All Saints started playing handball last year, and have set up a club which meets on Friday afternoons. Since then they have competed in the London Junior League with their Under-16s team as well as the Inter-Borough Girls competition and national competitions.<br />
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London Handball Development Officer Ari Bekker said: “John was amazing! He decided to coach them and in seconds he had them doing some new exercises and playing handball – he looked like he had always been doing it!<br />
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“The kids loved him! John blew everyone away with his positive, professional and very confident personality towards the kids. They looked up to him and I am sure this will be an experience they will remember when they play in future competitions. They are all hoping to meet him again in April when John will be back on court with GB men.”<br />
<br />
After training, John gave out medals to the top three teams and then signed some photos of the GB Men for the youngsters, as well as some of his GB playing kit.<br />
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All Saints PE teacher Dermot O'Brien said: “Handball is a new sport we are promoting at All Saints school. We have had a very positive reaction and we have a large amount of pupils attending. The kids were extremely excited when they met an international handball star!”<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcq6_8jWLqLuknE2Avh6XhIEEBmHdP3NHxzSwS_esU9VsUGzjugZ6nmaj6velWus0SBxzuATIETSfkNHeouFSWsJgg5_si7yclZZxv5qqZTjNjwng5Tyf8_dxcIxV3vOVnZnQ/s1600/Barking+school+pic.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcq6_8jWLqLuknE2Avh6XhIEEBmHdP3NHxzSwS_esU9VsUGzjugZ6nmaj6velWus0SBxzuATIETSfkNHeouFSWsJgg5_si7yclZZxv5qqZTjNjwng5Tyf8_dxcIxV3vOVnZnQ/s320/Barking+school+pic.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br />
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</div><div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19552832.post-73384735031425530952012-03-08T15:24:00.000+00:002012-03-08T15:24:07.801+00:00Pinsent Masons unveiled as Cup title sponsors<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkHFmNQfGjamljluwxNJYHzOo_shdtE1W8_JcIVcbbpRyB32KiGDuxht5XZ55z_6ojTD3rkbMKkN4eFgIIhJhZH3Paql4ZhyphenhyphenEHMtLcPBug5ClrfceBQ7kZW3nnXnlIZgH8eW4/s1600/London+Handball+Cup+logo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkHFmNQfGjamljluwxNJYHzOo_shdtE1W8_JcIVcbbpRyB32KiGDuxht5XZ55z_6ojTD3rkbMKkN4eFgIIhJhZH3Paql4ZhyphenhyphenEHMtLcPBug5ClrfceBQ7kZW3nnXnlIZgH8eW4/s320/London+Handball+Cup+logo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>INTERNATIONAL law firm Pinsent Masons has been unveiled as the title sponsor of the London Handball Cup, to be staged in the capital from April 5-7.<br />
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Great Britain Men’s handball team will take on Tunisia, South Korea and Argentina in the Pinsent Masons’ London Handball Cup at Crystal Palace National Sports Centre.<br />
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The event forms a crucial part of the GB side’s preparations for this summer’s Olympic Games, and has been made possible thanks to considerable backing from UK Sport.<br />
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British Handball recently welcomed Pinsent Masons on board as one of a raft of new sponsors which included Collins Stewart Wealth Management, bolstering support for handball from the City’s financial quarter.<br />
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One of the fastest growing sports in the country, handball is set to become one of the hits of this summer’s Olympics with participation levels in schools, universities and community groups exploding across Britain.<br />
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Trevor Watkins, head of sport at Pinsent Masons, comments: "The inaugural Pinsent Masons’ London Handball Cup is a great platform for us as a multinational law firm. It will enable our staff and clients to engage in our partnership with GB Handball through a prestigious international event. Bringing together leading teams in a pre-Olympics tournament is a great opportunity for us to extend our support for the sport and invest in its future." <br />
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UK Sport’s Head of Major Events, Esther Nicholls, said: “UK Sport is pleased to be supporting the Pinsent Masons’ London Handball Cup, which will be a fantastic showcase for handball in the UK, and will provide valuable experience for both the athletes and their support staff ahead of our home Games in under six months time.<br />
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“In the lead up to London 2012, 41 of the 46 Olympic and Paralympic sports have secured backing from UK Sport’s National Lottery funded World Class Events Programme to stage a major event, and handball will be the 41st of these, supporting our aspiration to ensure all sports are best prepared for the home staging of the London Olympic and Paralympic Games.”<br />
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British Handball Chief Executive Paul Goodwin said: “We’re delighted to have Pinsent Masons on board, not just as title sponsor for the Pinsent Masons’ London Handball Cup, but also going forward to the future as we continue to promote the sport.<br />
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“The Olympics have given us a rare opportunity to introduce Britain to handball, a sport which is massively popular across the world because it is fun, fast and physical and can be played by people of all ages.<br />
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“We look forward to working with UK Sport’s events team, Pinsent Masons and all our sponsors as the British teams prepare for the London Olympics. But also we look to the future and hope that some of the youngsters now playing handball for the first time might also achieve their own Olympic Dreams in Rio 2016 and 2020.”<br />
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Having British teams competing in the Olympic handball competition for the first time has given the sport a huge boost at grassroots level across the country, with England Handball and Scottish Handball working tirelessly to introduce the sport to as many people as possible.<br />
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England Handball reports a major rise in the number of people being introduced to the sport in schools – last year, 58,000 children were introduced to the sport by England Handball, compared to 10,500 three years ago.<br />
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They were given a target of getting 3,000 youngsters regularly playing handball by 2013 – as of last year they had smashed that target and report that more than 9,000 have discovered just how much fun the sport is and play it regularly.<div class="blogger-post-footer">Handball News is produced by Snowdon Sports Media for The British Handball Association</div>Frazer Snowdonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00857055826047518726noreply@blogger.com0