The European Handball Championship is also about qualification for the 2024 Olympics in Paris. An “absurd constellation” emerged in the game between Germany and Croatia on Wednesday evening.
The last semi-finalist of this 2024 European Handball Championship will be determined on Wednesday. Germany has the best cards and with a win would be one of the last four teams alongside France, Denmark and Sweden. On the last match day of the main round groups in Cologne and Hamburg there are other important decisions – it’s about qualification for the Olympic handball tournament in Paris.
Curiously, a defeat against Germany could help the Croatian national handball team, which is bottom of the main round group I with one point and has no chance of advancing, to get one step closer to the Olympic Games. Axel Kromer, sports director of the German Handball Association (DHB), spoke of an “absurd constellation”.
Handball at the Olympics – this is how qualifying for Paris works
Twelve men’s and twelve women’s teams will take part in the Olympic handball tournaments in Paris, which will be held from July 25th to August 11th, 2024. Four men’s national teams are already guaranteed to take part: France (hosts), Denmark (2023 World Champions), Argentina (winners of the 2023 Pan American Games) and Japan (winners of the Asian qualifying event). Further participants will be determined at the current African Championships in Egypt and the European Handball Championships in Germany.
If the French or the Danes become European champions, the next best team in this European Championship that is not called France or Denmark will move up. If the two top favorites play the final against each other, the game for third place would decide direct Olympic qualification. Sweden and possibly Germany can therefore have legitimate hopes for a starting place in Paris.
The Olympics Qualifying tournaments
Things get more complicated in the qualifying tournaments, where the remaining six places for Paris are allocated. In mid-March 2024, three groups with four teams each will be played; the two best-placed teams in each group will reach the Olympic Games. Spain, Sweden, Germany, Norway, Egypt and Hungary are already seeded for these qualifying tournaments, as they finished third to eighth at the 2023 World Cup in Poland and Sweden.
And now the Croatians come into play: If Sweden, Germany or Hungary become European champions or qualify directly for Paris as silver or bronze medalists, the ninth best team at the 2023 World Cup will move up to the qualifying tournaments – Croatia. With a win on Wednesday, the DHB team would have secured the semi-finals – and Croatia would have the starting place in the Olympic qualification tournament, as either Sweden or Germany would qualify directly.
Croatia’s chances of qualifying for the tournament are high anyway
So is Croatia only playing at half strength? Hardly likely. “The most important thing will be that we free ourselves from the idea that we might be given something for free.”said DHB sports director Kromer on Tuesday. The 47-year-old estimates the chances of Croatia getting a place in the qualifying tournament as “pretty high”. “Because in addition: If the African champions were called Egypt as usual, they would also move forward.”
In addition, if Hungary reaches the semi-finals instead of Germany, Croatia will also take part in the qualifying tournament. The Croatians would only not move up if Austria became European champions or the best team in the European Championship that was not called France or Denmark. So there are many constellations for the team around captain Domagoj Duvnjak – who said after the defeat against Iceland that his team felt it was their honor to make the last game against Germany positive.
European Championship placement can be important
Regardless of the Croatians, the two best teams in this European Championship, who do not yet have a ticket to Paris or to one of the qualifying tournaments, will reach the events in March. With the win on Tuesday evening against Denmark, Slovenia will finish the European Handball Championship in at least sixth place and has secured one of the two places. The other goes to either Portugal, Austria, Norway or Iceland. The quartet is looking at the last matchday of Group II and the African Championships: If Egypt and Germany win, Hungary or Sweden get the other European starting place at the Olympics, Slovenia will be in tenth place at the 2023 World Cup in the qualifying tournaments – accordingly the next best thing will move up team for this European Championship.