The medal collectors go for it

20 years ago Larvik HK was founded. Since then the club from Southern Norway has become the absolute flagship of women’s handball in the country of the reigning Olympics and European Champion. 36 titles on national and international fields are the great outcome of this work.

From the start of this season the dominance should become even clearer, as Larvik HK managed to bring back home four well-known Norwegian absolute world stars from Denmark, where most of the Norwegians used to played before.

Thanks to their transfers Larvik now have the two World Handball Players of the years 2007 and 2008 in their squad: Gro Hammerseng and Linn-Kristin Riegelhuth.

Hammerseng arrived from FC Midtjylland in Denmark together with another Olympics Champion, Katja Nyberg.

Riegelhuth was playing for FCK for one year and then returned to her former club. Another former FCK player, goalkeeper Cecilie Leganger, joined the Larvik team and will share this position with two times Olympic Champion Lene Rantala from Denmark.

Including Nyberg, Hammerseng and Riegelhuth Larvik can count on not less that eleven current national team players, awarded with a great number of medals and titles like Olympics Champion, four times European Champion, WCH runners-up, and more.

"It’s an absolute dream scenario to work with those world class players," coach Karl Erik Bøhn, who extended his contract until 2012, said.

After winning the double in Norway again and reaching the EHF Women’s Champions League semi-finals for the third time in club history in the last season, Larvik is aiming really high now.

"Of course we want to remain number one in all Norwegian competitions," Bøhn said: "But now we’re also focusing on reaching the EHF Women’s Champions League final – and to do everything possible to win the title."

The group phase will reveal much, as two clubs with the ambition to reach the final will meet: Larvik and last season’s finalist Oltchim Vâlcea are both in Group C.

"This is an exciting group. Two top teams, that both can go really far in the tournament, meet very early. I believe the Romanians and my team are the two favourites to go on to the Main Round," Bøhn said.

For him it’s a challenge to integrate the new players, but this task looks quite easy as all of them played (and play) together in the national team.

Beside that, for the Norwegian national players in Larvik it is the most important part to work for the dream to win the fourth consecutive EHF EURO title in December. They will be playing the Preliminary Round and the Main Round not in Larvik but in Lillehammer.

"This is parallel to the club’s success very important for us until the end of the year," Hammerseng said and added: "It’s great to be home again, and now we’re aiming high. Even as we now have two world class players for each position, I don’t think there will be problems or annoyance between the players. We’re professional and we all have common goals to reach."

Additionally to the new quartet pivot Heidi Löke is one of the key figures. She was last season’s top scorer in the Norwegian league (205 goals), was awarded best player of the league and was also LHK’s top scorer in the Women’s EHF Champions League.

Among the squad Nora Mörk could be an uprising star for the future, as she led the Norwegian juniors to the WCh title in Korea this summer as well as to the EHF EURO title 2009 in Hungary.

Key facts

Newcomers: Gro Hammerseng (from FC Midtjylland), Katja Nyberg (from FC Midtjylland), Linn-Kristin Riegelhuth (from FCK), Cecilie Leganger (from FCK), Thea Mörk (from Njard)

Left the club: Raphaelle Tervel (to Itxako), Marianne Iversen, Emily Stang Sando, Pia Christine Narvesen (all to Flint), Inger Sofie Heieras (end of career)

Coach: Karl Eric Bøhn (NOR, since 2005)

Find more information here.