Goalkeeper Katharina Filter feels just as comfortable in the sand as she does on a resinous indoor floor. The 24-year-old is Germany’s most successful handball player.
World champion, European champion and World Games winner in beach handball – and the clear number one in the indoor selection. Thanks to Filter’s parades, the DHB team opened the door to the quarter-finals at the World Cup in Denmark, Norway and Sweden.
For the woman from Hamburg, it doesn’t matter what the surface is – the main thing is that she has a ball in her hand. Currently the full focus is on the indoor version. After four World Cup victories, the DHB selection is leading its main round group ahead of title candidate Denmark. A win on Saturday (6 p.m., audio report on sportschau.de) against Serbia and Germany will ensure the quarter-finals.
Praise from all sides
Filter wants to shine again. Like against Romania, when she was the best player with 17 saves. “She saves our asses when things aren’t going so well. We can be very proud that we have such a goalkeeper. She pushes the team,” said teammate Xenia Smits.
National coach Markus Gaugisch praised: “Physically she is in good spirits. She also exudes the necessary calm.”
Dream of the Olympics
Relaxed and in a good mood: Filter ensures a beach feeling in the handball hall in Herning. Filter told the sports show that she takes the serenity from the sand with her into the hall. “But also tactical and technical things. The timing is different in the sand than on the indoor floor. But the successes and victories also provide security”.
It would be difficult for her to decide between the two handball variants. “I really enjoy doing both. But because beach handball unfortunately didn’t make it to the Olympics, the focus is more on the indoor arena in order to be able to fulfill the Olympic dream.” The world champion qualifies directly for Paris 2024, and places two to seven receive a place in one of the three qualifying tournaments in April.
Lots of handball, little vacation
Indoor handball, beach handball in the summer – there’s little free time left. She does enjoy going on vacation, says Filter, but “That’s on the back burner for now. I have the feeling that I would miss out on more if I didn’t play a beach tournament. If it’s in Portugal or something like that, you might also have a little holiday feeling.”.
Filter has been in France since the summer with the top club Brest – and therefore also in the Champions League. “There’s even more stress on me. I’ll have to see what it’s like in the future.”
Successful career
At the age of 24, Filter can already look back on a steep career. In 2014/15, as a 14-year-old, she attended the handball boarding school of the Danish first division team Viborg HK. “That helped me a lot, physically and personally. I had a lot of fun learning a new language at a boarding school abroad.”
This was followed by his youth at Buxtehuder SV, a move to Copenhagen in 2022 and a season later the next career step to Brest. “I’m playing at a different level now. I’m getting better and better at trusting myself and my strengths,” Filter said.
Filter expects a fighting game against Serbia
Your strong reflexes will also be required against Serbia. “It won’t be a nice handball game. “It’s going to be dirty, it’s going to be a fight and it’s going to be very physical,” predicted the goalkeeper. The most important thing against the big Serbians is good defense.
But even if there are gaps in the defense, Katharina Filter is still waiting behind them.