The European Open took place in Sweden from July 1st to 5th, where the Swiss U16 handball players put on an impressive tournament. They finished the preliminary round in first place and secured a place in the main round. There they impressed with three wins and only one loss and qualified for the semi-final against Hungary, which they won with a narrow 25:24 victory.
Nerve-wracking until the last second
In the final, Switzerland faced Germany. “I was very nervous at first,” says Amy Koch, a GC Amicitia player, “but as soon as I was on the field, the nerves subsided and I was able to block everything out. Of course, the game was still nerve-wracking.” After a close game, the Swiss team was leading 26:24 90 seconds before the final whistle. However, the Germans managed to equalize at the last second and forced Switzerland into overtime. And in the following ten minutes, neither team was able to win, so the game went to a shoot-out. “We kept our nerve and showed what a strong team we are,” says Amy, who did not play in the shoot-out but was all the more excited. With impressive shots, the Swiss ultimately secured the title in Gothenburg. “In the end, we were just glad that it was over,” admits Amy. “At first we could hardly believe that we had won. We did not expect this outcome at the beginning.”
Milestone for Swiss women’s handball
The fact that the U16 team has now won the first title in Swiss women’s handball means a lot to Amy. And perhaps the victory is even a good omen for the European Women’s Handball Championship, which will take place in Switzerland from the end of November to the beginning of December. As a junior, Amy will of course not be on the field herself, but she is looking forward to sitting in the audience and cheering on the Swiss women. “The players of the Nati A team are our role models,” she explains. “The fact that we juniors have now shown the way and are the first to reach such a major milestone makes me very proud.”
Simone Schmid
