Bratislava (dpa) – Despite the increasing number of corona cases at the European Handball Championship, canceling the tournament is currently not an issue.
“We plan to carry the tournament through to the end,” said the Secretary General of the European Handball Federation (EHF), Martin Hausleitner. In view of the dynamic development, however, the Austrian cannot give any guarantees. “We look from day to day and do not know what challenges we will face tomorrow.” The Omikron variant “completely changed” the situation at the tournament.
The German team is the most affected with twelve players who have tested positive so far. Croatia, who finished second at the European Championships in the finals in Hungary and Slovakia, was hit just as badly, with a total of nine positive cases up to Thursday. Numerous other teams are also affected.
A withdrawal from the EM would have had significant consequences for the German Handball Federation (DHB). “According to our legal system, leaving the tournament would have meant a suspension for the nation, i.e. no participation in a World Cup qualification and difficult circumstances with regard to the EM 2024,” said Hausleitner.
Due to twelve corona cases in the national team, the DHB had discussed withdrawing from the tournament with the EHF two days ago. Among other things, this could have led to Germany even being banned for the EM 2024 in its own country.
“There would also have been economic consequences that we would have been obliged to demand,” said Hausleitner. If German EM games had been cancelled, it could have been extremely expensive for the DHB, since the EHF is tied to contracts with sponsors and TV stations. In addition, a fine would have been paid to the DHB.