The ‘Guerreras’ were placed in Group B with Hungary, the Netherlands, the hosts France, Brazil and Angola
MADRID, 16 Abr. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Spanish men’s handball team will play in its group at the next Paris Olympic Games against Croatia, Germany, Slovenia, Sweden and Japan, while the women’s team was drawn with Hungary, the Netherlands, the host France, Brazil and Angola, according to This Tuesday was the draw held by the International Handball Federation (IHF) in the French city of Créteil.
The ‘Hispanos’, who started from Pot 1, will repeat in Group A their duel against Slovenia, a team they met in the recent Olympic Qualifiers held in Granollers. In addition, Group B will face Denmark, Norway, Hungary, hosts France, Egypt and Argentina.
Meanwhile, the ‘Guerreras’ were in Pot 3 and will compete in Group B of the Olympic Games, where they will also repeat their duel from the recent Pre-Olympic Championship held in Torrevieja against the Netherlands. On the other hand, Group A will have a full Nordic presence and will include Norway, Germany, Slovenia, Sweden, Denmark and South Korea.
The top four finishers in each group at the end of this phase will advance to the quarterfinals, where the qualifying rounds will begin to advance to the semifinals and then advance to the grand final for Olympic gold.
“We knew that any of the groups was going to be difficult, taking into account the level of the teams at the Games. The most important thing will be to qualify for the quarterfinals and, if we achieve that, we know that all the teams in the crossroads will be very tough,” he declared. Jordi Ribera, coach of the ‘Hispanos’, to the official media of the RFEBM.
To reach the quarterfinals, Spain will have to work hard. “Croatia clearly beat us in the last European Championship, Sweden was the European champion in 2022; Japan, the Asian champion; and both Germany and Slovenia are great powers. Our group is the one with the most European teams and there is a high level “added Ribera.
Ambros Martín, coach of the ‘Guerreras’, also spoke: “The most important thing was to be classified and we achieved it. From there, it will be spectacular to play in France against the host, it will be a unique experience. As for the Netherlands, “We will face again a rival from the ‘top 5’ who is always in the fight for medals.”
“I think the rest of the teams with us will be very even and will depend a lot on the moment,” Martín highlighted. “We are happy and satisfied, because it could have been worse. Now we have to focus on getting there well and preparing well to compete,” he concluded.