Unstoppable on the way to the title: Three HCD players become beach handball world champions

Created: 06/28/2022, 12:06 p.m

By: Guido Verstegen

The families of the three Gröbenzellers Belen Gettwart, Kirsten Walter and Isabel Kattner were there live at the World Cup triumph on Crete.

© Jörg Gettwart

A year after its surprising European Championship triumph, the German women's national team in beach handball on Crete was also crowned world champion.

Gröbenzell/Heraklion – "It's unbelievable", national coach Alexander Novakovic (TSV Ismaning) needed a while to grasp the full extent of the coup.

For the first time in the history of the competition, a team managed to finish a World Cup tournament without losing a set: in the 2-0 (15:14, 22:20) final against Spain, third in the European Championship, both sets ended in a draw, with golden goals the triumph perfect.

First, Isabel Kattner (HCD Gröbenzell/Beach Bazis Schleißheim) ensured the success of the set, then the goal of 18-year-old Michelle Schäfer (TSV Haunstetten/Brüder Ismaning) sparked a single German storm of jubilation.

"The youngest player of the tournament scores the decisive goal!" Novakovic said happily.

He was aware that his team had "a little bit of luck" against Spain - and could rely on an outstanding Katharina Filter in goal.

Germany plows through the preliminary and main rounds

The German selection was at operating temperature from the start of the tournament and was undamaged in its prominent group in the preliminary round.

The opening win against defending champions Brazil (26:14, 16:4) was followed by successes over Hungary (18:14, 20:17) and Norway (19:14, 27:20), then Uruguay were in the main round (22:12, 24:14), Argentina (18:16, 19:15) and the Netherlands (23:14, 26:14) inferior.

"The only game in which we didn't come close to our performance was the quarter-finals against Portugal," said Novakovic, who took the certainty from precisely this difficult game (20:12, 10:8) that his protégés could still do great things can create on Crete.

"The team showed character, trust was required, and we came back."

So the German players chanted the song that had accompanied them through the entire tournament and is so apt: "The train, the train, the train has no brakes!" Belen Gettwart (HCD Gröbenzell/Beach Bazis Schleißheim) brought it up the point: “We never stopped and always gave everything.

We're just a great team!” With the semi-final victory against the Netherlands (18:10, 25:16) they made it into the final.

Video analysis of opponents brings success

"We had a few more question marks before this tournament than before the European Championship, but it's remarkable how the team has matured and decided independently within our match plan," Novakovic analyzed the tournament on Monday.

The "match plan" is what emerges from the meticulous video analysis by assistant coach Hendrik Sander in the discourse with Novakovic.

"Hendrik plays actively himself, he has a different perspective again," the head coach praised his assistant.

HCD trio right in the middle: Gröbenzellers Kirsten Walter (right), Belen Gettwart (2nd from left) and Isabel Kattner (middle) come home draped in gold.

© Julia Nikoleit

After the greatest success in the history of German beach handball, the next highlight is already waiting for the world champion team: the World Games in Birmingham/USA (July 7th to 17th).

(Guido Verstegen)