DHB women say a painful farewell to the World Cup
A damper instead of a consolation prize: after a disappointing performance against the Netherlands at the end of the World Cup, the DHB women finished the tournament in sixth place. National coach Gaugisch feels "empty". In the end, they fail again due to a blackout star. And what about the 2024 Olympics?
Emily Bölk put her hands on her hips, her eyes on the ground. The mood-killer against the Netherlands at the end of the World Cup didn't sit well with Germany's handball players and their captain. "I assumed that we would tear ourselves apart again. I was sure that we could overrun the Dutch," said Bölk angrily after the 26:30 (7:16) defeat in the match for fifth place: "But that didn't work at all." National coach Markus Gaugisch spoke of a "very tough end" to the tournament: "I feel very empty right now. The defeat was sobering. The Netherlands were better than us in all areas. That's why it hurts very, very much."
The best World Cup result since bronze 16 years ago could not really console anyone in the German camp about the weak performance against the Netherlands. "Sixth place is not a bad result," said co-captain Alina Grijseels. It reflects "where we are at the moment. But we need to play at a more consistent level."
With a blackout start and weak finishing, Germany's last World Cup game was very reminiscent of their quarter-final exit against Sweden (20:27). It took more than twelve minutes for the DHB women to score their first goal on Sunday, and the game was already decided at the break due to a number of missed shots.
Now looking towards Olympic qualification
The best scorers for the German Handball Federation (DHB) were Grijseels with six and Antje Döll with seven goals in front of 2000 spectators in the sparsely attended Jyske Bank Boxen. At least: The desolate final performance has no negative effects on the Olympic qualification. In sixth place at the World Cup, Germany will now face Montenegro, Slovenia and Paraguay in the Olympic qualifying tournament in April 2024.
"We are full of hope that we can make it back to the Olympic Games for the first time since 2008. Possibly even together with the men," said DHB Sports Director Axel Kromer at the end, despite the dampener, and announced on Sunday that he would bid to host such a tournament for women and men.
The German players were at a loss to explain their disastrous start. "It will be a point that we take with us into the World Cup analysis. We have to see what the reason is and learn from it," said Bölk. Grijseels was also self-critical: "We simply have to ask ourselves why it happened so blatantly twice in this tournament."
Leuchter has to go to hospital
The injury to Viola Leuchter caused additional frustration in the German camp. The 19-year-old backcourt player, who was named best young player of the World Cup by the world governing body, twisted her left knee after a jump shot in the first half and subsequently had to go to hospital. "I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it's not the worst-case scenario, but that it's an injury that won't mean a long period of absence," said Gaugisch. A diagnosis is still pending.
The German women's team had already secured their ticket for one of the three Olympic qualifying tournaments early on by reaching the quarter-finals. "With a bit of distance, we can be proud of what we achieved in the preliminary and main rounds," said Bölk. However, she added that they had to work on "being able to show the same performance in games seven, eight and nine".
Five wins at the start of the tournament were followed by three defeats in the other four games, including the clear defeat against Sweden, the 32:26 victory in the placement game against the Czech Republic, which was hardly relevant from a sporting point of view, and the defeat against the Netherlands. "We have to let that sink in and then we'll find a lot of good things," said Gaugisch.
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Despite the disappointing finish at the World Handball Championships, where the DHB women ended in sixth place, they remain optimistic about their Olympic qualification. They will face Montenegro, Slovenia, and Paraguay in the Olympic qualifying tournament in April 2024. (DHB, Handball, World Championships)
In light of their performance at the World Championships, the DHB women aim to improve their consistency and avoid repeat performances like their blackout start and weak finishing, which were characteristic of their matches. (DHB, Handball, World Championships)
Source: www.ntv.de
