Why is it always the Germans?

Again two handball players with a positive corona test

Created: 01/24/2022, 13:57

By: Patrick Mayer

Shaken by Corona: the DHB team at the European Handball Championship.

© IMAGO / Laci Perenyi

The DHB team reports two more positive corona tests at the European Handball Championship.

What goes wrong with the German national team that gets so many players? 

Munich/Bratislava – Germany has a corona problem.

This applies to large parts of society during the pandemic.

This is particularly true these days for the German national handball team, which will miss the semi-finals of the European Championships in Hungary and Slovakia after beating Sweden 21:25.

Germany at the European Handball Championship: 15 positive corona tests from the DHB team

Corona cases 14 and 15 were added to the DHB team this Monday.

"With Simon Ernst and Patrick Wiencek, two other players with positive tests are out," said DHB sports director Axel Kromer on Monday morning in Bratislava.

In addition, “another delegation member who is not sitting on the bench” tested positive, Kromer said.

The question now arises: Why does it always hit the Germans?

Other teams also have Corona concerns.

In mid-January, the Poles reported five corona cases in one fell swoop.

Shortly before the main round game against Germany (23:29), Spain also had two positive corona tests.

And: In the Netherlands, top thrower Kay Smits tested positive for the corona virus * at the weekend.

The extent of the DHB team is unique in this tournament - in a negative sense.

We can hardly do more.

National coach Alfred Gislason

Corona at the European Handball Championship: Germany hits it in rows - despite strict rules

“Thank God we still got through,” DHB official Kromer said in an interview with

after the 33:29 of the German handball team at the start against Belarus : “Of course we breathe the same air and that’s why it’s there there is always a certain risk involved across the board. We certainly have risks today that unfortunately go beyond normal. The Bundesliga would also have played if there was no EM break at the moment.” Shortly afterwards, the first corona case became known with Julius Kühn (MT Melsungen).

In the meantime, the DHB had tightened the internal team corona rules*.

The players isolated themselves in their single rooms.

The food was brought to them on the very same.

Video studies to analyze the opponent were made digitally via chat.

Only shortly before the games do the handball players meet in the team bus.

Masks are also compulsory in the cabin.

In the video: Handball EM - more corona cases in the DHB team

The players were and are constantly being tested by a medical employee, as reported by ZDF.

"It's a mystery to me how the virus got to us," said national coach Alfred Gislason.

The strict rules have been adhered to since the beginning of January and it still happened.

"We can hardly do more," said the 62-year-old Icelander.

Germany at the European Handball Championship: DHB team meets Russia at the end

The German delegation had praised the measures taken on site in Bratislava.

The hall in the Slovakian capital may only be filled up to a capacity of 25 percent.

There is a strict FFP2 mask requirement in the entire indoor area.

Furthermore, the so-called 1G rule applies in Bratislava - only vaccinated people are allowed in the arena.

Whether players, supervisors or fans.

Meanwhile, in the Hungarian capital Budapest, games are sometimes played in front of 20,000 spectators, initially without the obligation to wear a mask.

The teams that have played here so far have not had any such corona outbreak to complain about.

The European Championship semifinals are now taking place in the metropolis on the Danube.

While Germany has to organize the return transport of a number of players who have tested positive before its last European Championship game in the intermediate round against Russia (Tuesday, 6 p.m., here in the live ticker).

And the DHB is faced with the question of why there were so many infections with the 2016 European champion.

*