“
The discourse of handball is based on the concepts of living together and solidarity.
Thursday, April 14, before the friendly match between France and Spain at the AccorHotels Arena, Philippe Bana, the president of the French Handball Federation (FFHB), was smiling when presenting the Hand'Solidaire foundation. .
At his side, Marie-Georges Buffet explained why she had accepted the role of president of the executive committee of this foundation: “
To chair this executive committee today is a real honour.
I have been closely following the development of French handball and the structuring of its federation for years.
After the Maison du Handball, the creation of this foundation was a logical step for a mature federation ready to commit to building the handball of tomorrow.
»
A way for the former Minister of Sports to sum up this desire of Philippe Bana not to be satisfied "
with trophies and victories on the sporting level
", but also to "
give meaning
" to this undeniable success for a discipline which multiplies international feats of arms.
Like the successful double at the last Tokyo Olympics, since the FFHB can be proud of having fully grasped the importance of gender parity, establishing itself as one of the model federations in the Hexagon on the topic.
Around an executive committee that is eclectic to say the least – between former handball players, but also journalists or TV host who are fans of the discipline (Jean-Luc Reichmann) -, the Hand' foundation
aims to amplify and highlight the social performance actions of the FFHB and develop cooperation with private actors around projects that bring people together.
»
Read alsoEstelle Nze Minko: “Against Ukraine, it will be a match full of symbols”
Placed under the aegis of the French Sport Foundation, Hand'Solidaire will be financed exclusively by donations and other contributions from private companies.
"
Between the world of committed handball and the private world, there was missing a link, a link, a transmission belt capable of instigating or supporting social innovation, of creating flexibility in initiatives to democratize the practice of handball, like what has been done in other areas of sport
“, explains Philippe Bana.
More concretely, this foundation will make it possible, among other things, to carry out tangible actions with various audiences in order to promote the development of handball in all its forms.
To facilitate the implementation of these actions and maintain a good balance, they are categorized into five main families: Hand for All, Hand health, eco-citizenship, international solidarity and finally a youth/integration/employment component.
Already four projects launched
Already four projects have been selected by the Executive Committee, including two aimed abroad and on the African continent, where handball remains an unknown or minor discipline, apart from Maghreb countries.
The MESAD France association is thus launching a project which aims to promote handball among children aged 5 to 12 in Ivorian schools and colleges, while the Pays d'Aix Université Club Handball created the Senegal Academy in collaboration with the Federation of this country.
So many first stones laid to build this foundation, which sees the light of day when the French team welcomes its Ukrainian counterpart to Le Havre, a match made possible thanks to the 30,000 euros invested by the FFHB to allow the training to move. of the East at the height of the war with Russia.