Without some of its stars who have fallen in Corona, despite being accused of conspiring to poison food at the national team hotel, and after a huge drama in the quarter-finals, tonight the Danish team will face the World Cup semi-finals against Spain
The Danes celebrate the victory over Egypt in the quarterfinals
Photography:
Reuters
What did not happen to Denmark on the way to the semi-finals of the World Handball Championship against Spain to be held tonight (Friday, 21:30, Sport 3) in Cairo.
Some of its stars could not reach the championship without a crowd due to Corona, and the Slovenian team accused it of conspiring to poison food at the hotel where the teams lived (the Slovenes claimed that the Danes knew there was a problem with the food so they ordered food from outside, Pizza from the outside).
In the quarter-finals, the Danes met the Egyptian host for the most thrilling game the championship has ever known, which ended after a huge drama that included being eliminated and winning by a single goal.
It should of course be remembered that Denmark is the reigning world champion and Olympic champion from 2016.
It also has the European Championship from 2012, and in fact it is a handball empire from a country that lives the industry and where football is at the same level of popularity as handball.
Just to clear the ear: The Danish Handball Association, which lists current and past players, has 150,000 athletes.
The team's sponsors throughout Europe bring in a good few million a year for the Danish association, and of course its stars are scattered throughout the German league and other successful leagues and win individual titles.
To this must be added the fact that the Danes will host, with the Croats and Norwegians, the 2025 World Cup, and you will have a team that controls the industry at a high level.
Of course it should also be remembered that Danish women are an empire in their own right, as they achieved immense achievements even before the men did so, with gold medals in Atlanta, Sydney and Athens in a row, until the men arrived and took over the premiere.
So what's the secret and how did the Danes become the best handball manufacturers in the world?
As with any sporting success, the subject has many explanations.
The first is economic - Denmark has recovered quickly and sharply from the economic crisis that hit the world in 2007, and local businesses have poured money on local leagues because the popularity of the sport has never been hurt.
The big money spilled in the Danish league can in the initial stage hold a strong and attractive league, with the big talents staying first in Denmark and only then escaping to the big teams in Europe.
To this must be added the Danish tradition, since in many cities in the country there are only men's and women's handball teams, without football teams.
Will all this be enough tonight to continue the historic journey of the Danes over the past decade?
It is very difficult to know.
Not only are the Spaniards a handball powerhouse themselves, when it comes to the crazy championship in Cairo anything can happen.
In the first semi-final (18:30, Sport 3) Sweden and France will meet.