Timo Kastening paid great praise to the audience in Cologne for their reaction to the anthem breakdown before the German handball players’ first European Championship main round game against Iceland (26:24). “I thought that was brilliant. That’s what makes handball,” said the right winger of the DHB selection.
During the performance before kick-off, the Icelandic anthem was initially distorted and played haltingly on the tape. The organizers said the reason for this was a technical problem with the laptop’s audio player.
The 19,750 fans then started chanting for Iceland, bridging the almost one-minute break. “I would have liked to call,” said Kastening and added: “You could see that everyone was keen on handball and the Icelanders. That’s why they were rightly celebrated.”
When the Icelandic national anthem was played in the usual sound quality, national coach Alfred Gislason also sang along. For the 64-year-old Icelander, it was his first competitive game against his home country.