Handball, an exciting and fast-paced sport, is cherished by millions of athletes and fans worldwide, but not that much in Ireland. However, for a long period of time, Handball has faced significant challenges in Ireland. These challenges encompass a range of issues and in this article, we will explore some of the various obstacles that handball encounters on the island, as well as the potential solutions that can help revitalize and strengthen the sport within the country. By shedding light on these facts, we hope to highlight the importance of addressing these challenges and ensuring a brighter future for handball in Ireland.
1. Sport culture
Every country in the world has certain sports that are deeply ingrained in its traditions.
In Ireland exists another handball, Gaelic Handball, because of that, Olympic Handball always gets confused.
In the rest of Europe, our team sport it is simply known as handball, while in the countries that have the Gaelic Handball (in the USA it's the same issue), it needs to be presented as European Handball, Olympic Handball, or Team Handball to be differentiated.
In this situation are 2 main factors that contribute to a sport culture that is focused more on some sports and less or non-existent for others.
A first reason is the promotion of the top sports that are having recognition in schools, after-school programs and amateurs clubs, making the population to choose those sports as it is common to practice a sport that has recognition in media and all around the country.
A second factor in this is the lack of awareness of the Olympic Handball between the locals, in schools and in media channels. Without a good promotion, it is hard to attract new joiners. Talking about promotion, isn't better to promote your own talents and activities in the big screens, so the population can become interested? In Ireland this aspect is lacking and because of it, the handball community consist of 99.9% of expats that know already the sport.
Not long ago, the men's national team had a significant number of Irish players representing Ireland abroad. All these players can become part of this awareness so much needed around the country, however, they are left in the shadow. Not only that, Ireland has important personalities of the handball that achieved success internationally, why not use their story to attract the younger generation?
In one of the previous articles, we talked about Chris O’Reilly, who played for the Irish national team, is a commentator for the European Handball Federation, a journalist, and co-host of the (Un)informed Handball Hour podcast together with another 2 Irish players, Alex Kulesh and Brian Campion. These three players, together with all the Irish Handball representatives of the national team, can create that motivation for a new joiner that is practising this sport, not only for fun, but to get to the point to represent their own country internationally. The creation of an effective awareness, needs to start with the athletes that can inspire motivation and role models.
2. Lack of handball halls
If we are discussing a different sports culture, one of the issues that arises is the lack of proper halls required for playing handball. Playing in smaller halls may not be the best option for countries that aim to develop a handball community. The question is, how can a sport increase its level if there is a lack of infrastructure? Shouldn't this be one of the aspects to be resolved at the top of the strategic plan?
3. Lack of natives within the clubs
The lack of awareness makes the sport known primarily among expats from countries with a handball culture and with only a small percentage of Irish natives involved. The number of expats involved is increasing disproportionately compared to the Irish natives. Is it the right decision to rely on migrants who settle in the country for a few years, or should there be a focus on cultivating a new generation that can contribute to the national team and to a more Irish league?
4. Low number of clubs
Once again, the awareness that is playing an important role in the creation of clubs. If a strategic plan is set in promoting this sport to the younger generation from every corner of the country, there could be a better view of this sport in front of everyone and a chance to create new clubs. Not only that, wouldn't be a good idea to offer support for the new enthusiasts clubs on how can get financial support to keep the clubs active?
To run a club is not the easiest decision. For the beginners that don't get any instructions, it can get very expensive too. For these handball lovers that work hard in creating a handball generation, it is needed a lot of support and guidance on how can make it work and go to the right direction without getting to the point that needs to stop their activities.
5. Experienced players versus beginners
The lack of handball culture and awareness becomes evident once again as experienced players are forced to play with beginners who want to practice handball as a hobby. Coaching experienced players alongside beginners is not an easy task, as the discrepancy in skill levels is so high that it leads to frustration for the beginners, who feel out of place in the team. For the experienced players, it becomes unsatisfactory and drives some to quit playing for the clubs. While not everyone has this reaction, looking at the situation overall, it is not the right environment to improve the handball level. Every season, the clubs have to relearn the same tactics because of new joiners, and with only two trainings per week, there isn't enough time to practice and see significant improvement. This is where the club and association need to strategize on how to make the beginners feel satisfied and motivated to continue training and improving. Last year, the Blitz Tournament was created specifically for beginners, but it didn't have much success as not many beginners showed up, resulting in more experienced players participating. For this year, nothing has been confirmed yet, but why not change the plan and organize small competitions between clubs instead of a full day of handball with multiple games in the county Meath ?
6. The importance of the national team
The national team is important for new joiners into the sport as it represents their country, provides inspiration and role models, helps in talent identification and development, brings exposure and recognition, and offers international experience and networking.
A national team encourages new joiners to strive for excellence, being consisted of highly skilled and accomplished athletes. For new joiners, seeing these athletes in action can be a great source of inspiration and motivation. They provide role models that new athletes can look up to and aspire to emulate in terms of skill, work ethic, and dedication.
By providing opportunities to compete at the highest level, new joiners get a chance to showcase their skills and catch the attention of coaches and selectors, who can help further their development. This can lead to scholarships, training programs, and other opportunities that can accelerate their progress. Competing against other countries, provides new joiners with valuable international experience, allowing them to learn from athletes from different parts of the world, understand different playing styles, and broaden their horizons. It also opens doors for networking with athletes, coaches, and officials from other countries, which can be beneficial for their future career in the sport.
In order to motivate new players to invest time in developing their skills to the point where they can represent their country overseas, it is necessary to establish recognition for the national players and team. This recognition should start within the handball community and then expand throughout the entire country by utilizing different channels to garner support and recognition. However, Ireland is currently a few steps behind in this regard, as the national team was abolished after the pandemic, even so the players and the coaches had to pay for their own expenses to represent their country abroad. As a result, the players who have worked hard over the years are not well-known within the community due to a lack of information, and recognition. We will delve into this topic in more detail another time.
If a new joiner sees that a sport such as Olympic Handball has no recognition, support, and any high objectives, how many of them will try to work hard to focus their time on excelling in this sport and not in another one that is more famous and has more chances of having a professional career?
In conclusion, the facts surrounding Irish handball reveal an undeniable passion for the sport by the volunteers over the years that can have promising opportunities for growth if the changes are embraced. The presence of talented players, dedicated coaches, clubs members, exited new beginners can go into the potential for further success. However, the main challenges that this sport is facing must be addressed, recognized and see what solutions can be found for better outcomes. By harnessing grassroots initiatives, increasing public awareness, and fostering partnerships, Irish handball can overcome these obstacles and thrive. With the right support, attitudes, acceptance and continued dedication, Irish handball has the potential to reach new heights and inspire future generations.
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