After reaching the European Championship final, German national handball player Juri Knorr stood behind Croatia coach Dagur Sigurdsson and expressed understanding for his criticism of the tournament plan.
“I fully support Dagur Sigurdsson with his statement. He raised many points on which I would only agree with him. Of course it wasn’t ideal for them today and that was certainly crucial today. Of course the forces play a role,” said Knorr after the DHB team’s 31:28 defeat in the semi-finals.
In a remarkable angry speech the evening before, Sigurdsson denounced the tight schedule and travel strains for his team.
Unlike Germany, Croatia played two games within two days at the end of the main round and had to travel from Sweden to Denmark on the non-game Thursday.
The European Handball Federation (EHF) has now announced adjustments to the schedules for future tournaments.
