European Handball Championship - "New experience": Gislason eagerly awaits the European Handball Championship
After a discreet New Year's Eve party, Alfred Gislason jetted from Berlin to tranquil Brunsbüttel on New Year's Day full of euphoria and enthusiasm. The start of the final preparatory course also increased the German handball coach's anticipation of the upcoming European Championship in Germany.
"I'm delighted to be able to experience a home European Championship now. It's something special and also a new experience for me," Gislason told the German Press Agency with a view to the mega-event from January 10-28. "It's something big for everyone who can be there."
The 64-year-old Icelander is aware of the enthusiasm in the country that will carry the team through the tournament. After all, he was up close and personal as national coach of his home country during the 2007 World Cup winter fairytale. "Back then, I experienced the special nature of a tournament in Germany," said Gislason. "Now I'm particularly looking forward to experiencing a tournament at home as Germany's national coach. It's a highlight for me."
Half of his life in Germany
This is hardly surprising, as Gislason has now spent half of his life in Germany. "For me, it's without question a home tournament, because I feel very connected to Germany. I stayed for so long for a reason. I like it here, I feel very comfortable here. As a historian, I'm also a big Germany fan," Gislason emphasized.
He has lived in a small town near Magdeburg for more than 20 years. He has now also rented an apartment in Berlin with his partner Hrund Grunnsteinsdottir. "I'll probably never be a real city dweller, but it's nice to have a contrast to my rural home," said Gislason.
After leading SC Magdeburg and, above all, THW Kiel to numerous successes as a club coach, he now wants to cause a sensation with the DHB team. Gislason has been in office since February 2020, but his first major tournaments have not gone according to plan.
Fifth at the World Cup
At the 2021 World Championships, the team, weakened by numerous withdrawals, recorded a historically poor result of twelfth place, and at the European Championships a year later, 18 coronavirus absentees in the team put an end to all medal dreams. Last year, the DHB team showed its potential for the first time with fifth place at the World Championships.
The national coach wants to build on this with his 18 players. "We want to show that we have taken another step forward," announced Gislason. In order to achieve this, he will work intensively on fine-tuning for the European Championship in the coming days. "We have a few issues to work on. But I'm not going to do our opponents the favor of blurting out what we're planning. That will remain internal," he said with a grin.
Before the opening match against Switzerland on January 10 in front of a world record crowd of over 50,000 fans in Düsseldorf, he hopes that the international test matches against Portugal on Thursday in Flensburg and Saturday in Kiel will give him some final insights into the form of his team. Other preliminary round opponents are North Macedonia and record world champions France.
If the tournament goes according to plan, Gislason wants to negotiate an extension to his contract, which expires this summer, with the association until the 2027 home World Cup. "I really enjoy working with this team. I think it has huge prospects for the future," he said, adding: "But I've been around long enough to know that you have to be successful. And that's now."
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Source: www.stern.de
