Germany flies to great heights with the Uscins missile
The German men's handball team is playing for Olympic medals. This was not expected, but it is part of a development. After the "handball miracle" against Olympic champions France, they now want it all.
There were 13 seconds left to play, with nearly 30,000 ecstatic French fans in the football stadium of Lille converted into a handball temple, cheering on their team to reach the semi-finals of the Olympic handball tournament. 13 seconds, a seemingly hopeless tiny fraction when you're trailing by two goals. Like the German team, which had given its all in a big game but seemed destined to come up empty-handed once again, as had so often been the case in recent years.
It was 27:29, then Renars Uscins finally brought the German handball future into the present. In a crazy final, Uscins saved his DHB team against all odds, first forcing extra time, then sending the legendary golden generation of the French into tears.
The left-hander, who had played in the junior national team just last summer, ended up with 14 goals. No other German national player had ever scored so many in a single Olympic game. The German team is now in the semi-finals. "We want it all now. That's clear. Now you want the best, and the best is gold," said left-winger Rune Dahmke before the semi-final against Spain (4:30 PM/ ZDF and live ticker on ntv.de).
The future is here
The Olympic tournament has an incredible performance density, with only 12 teams competing for the medals. Virtually all world-class, with Hungary and Croatia being two highly-rated teams that failed to make it out of the preliminary round. And the German group, which the DHB team won with nine Olympic debutants, accounts for three of the four semi-finalists. The French, the European champions and title defenders, the hosts driven by tens of thousands of fans, were such a feared quarter-final opponent that Slovenia deliberately lost their last group game against Germany to avoid the "Équipe tricolore". The path the German team has taken so far could not have been harder.
At the home European Championship in January, where they secretly hoped to cause a stir with the home crowd, there were a series of defeats: against France in the group phase, against the mighty Danes in the semi-finals, and finally against Sweden in a depressing bronze medal game. Nevertheless, they were confident that they had narrowed the gap to the absolute top nations France, Denmark, Sweden, and Spain. Not as spectacular as hoped, but a step nonetheless.
"We don't have the experience of Denmark, France, and Sweden, but we have a lot of talent," said head coach Alfred Gislason half a year ago. "With new players in the squad, we've gained new options that could be very valuable in the future. That was a step forward," praised captain Johannes Golla in his EM summary.
Now the future is here: With Uscins, the also 22-year-old goalkeeper David Späth, who made the final save to complete the Lille miracle, captain Golla (26), Julian Köster (24), and playmaker Juri Knorr (24), the performance carriers even have room for development. Against Spain, which only qualified for the semi-finals after extra time against Egypt and lost to Germany in the preliminary round (31:33), the DHB team is now suddenly the clear favorite. And they have their hands on the first medal since 2016.
**One wouldn't want to entertain the thought that "The Spanish are a team that could make it to the final without playing a good game. That's exactly how it feels right now. They're a very unpleasant opponent," warned Captain Golla. "I hope it won't be a disadvantage because we're underestimating them, but of course that won't happen." Left winger Dahmke, one of the last veterans on the team, is certain: "It won't be decided normally." The 2016 European champion is already preparing his team and the fans for "the next drama." And hope-bearer Uscins, who is tied for 4th place on the Olympic tournament's scoring list with 42 goals, wants to "show the same fight" as they did against France. "Otherwise, we'll be playing for bronze very quickly," said Uscins. His recipe? "We want to take the flow with us!"
This team isn't just full of talent, but also great determination and a hunger for new successes. They proved that at the home European Championship, where they briefly sparked euphoria. Even before the bronze medal match, the team had declined Cologne's Mayor Henriette Reeker's invitation to celebrate a potential bronze medal in the city's historic town hall: "Bronze would be a great finish, but we're not at the end of our journey yet. Therefore, we don't belong at such a reception," Captain Golla declared for his team. Now, they're already a good way further on that journey.**
The German handball team's journey in the Olympic tournament has seen them defy expectations, with their unexpected semifinal berth being a testament to this development. This success has earned them a match against Spain in the semifinals.
Germany's young players, such as 22-year-old Renars Uscins and goalkeeper David Späth, have shown significant promise, indicating that the future of German handball is promising and filled with potential.
