Tournament in Denmark - Semi-final beckons: Handball women ready for World Cup coup
No beer, no celebrations: at the joint dinner at the end of the flawless preliminary round of the World Cup, Germany's handball players immediately turned their focus to the next phase of the tournament.
"Of course we want to win as much as possible in the main round and not stop in the quarter-finals either, but progress," said goalkeeper Katharina Filter, setting the semi-finals as her goal.
After the impressive 33:17 victory over Poland, the DHB team will go into the main round with 4:0 points and an unshakeable confidence in their own strength. "We'll take this feeling with us," said co-captain Emily Bölk. Co-hosts Denmark, Romania and Serbia are the rivals. To reach the quarter-finals, national coach Markus Gaugisch's team must at least finish second in their group.
Gala performance against Poland
DHB sports director Axel Kromer believes that the team, which has been convincing so far, can advance to the semi-finals. "The chances are increasing because the girls are self-confident and have a clear plan. It remains to be seen whether that will continue to work. But I believe we can do it," said Kromer at the team hotel in Silkeborg.
The gala performance against Poland has further boosted their self-confidence. "That's another boost. Everyone is really keen to show what we can do. We want to step on the gas and rock the hall," said Filter.
For the national coach, the most important realization was "that we can play handball the way we want to". That should remain the case in the upcoming games. The basis for this is the defense, which was outstanding. "The defense was bombastic today. That's the key to success," said co-captain Alina Grijseels. Team-mate Amelie Berger described the evening as a "handball treat. We were able to show that we can play great handball. Now the next opponents can come."
Three decades after the historic World Championship triumph in 1993, which was celebrated for the 30th time on Tuesday, the foundations have been laid for another World Championship triumph. "We know our strength, but also the quality of our upcoming opponents. Nevertheless, we naturally want to get through the main round successfully," said Kromer.
Olympic ticket in sight
If they succeed and defending champions Norway and/or Olympic champions France also reach the quarter-finals, the DHB team would at least be guaranteed a place at an Olympic qualifying tournament in spring 2024 and could continue to dream of a ticket to Paris. "Participation in the Olympic Games is immensely important for us because it's a huge platform on which we can present ourselves," Kromer emphasized.
But for now, full concentration is on the World Cup finals, where anything seems possible. "The feeling is great," said Gaugisch. The national coach is correspondingly confident about the upcoming tasks: "We're not going crazy now. But we know what we can do and we'll keep doing what we do. Great games await us."
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Source: www.stern.de
