15 nations ready for European Youth Olympic Festival

16 men’s and women’s under 17 teams will get their first taste of Olympic competition on Monday as they take part in the European Youth Olympic Festival in Baku, Azerbaijan on 22-26 July.

In the two eight-team competitions, only host nation Azerbaijan feature in both, which means 15 nations will participate.

Hungary’s women won the event two years ago on home court in Györ and will feature again this summer, as will 2017 men’s champions Germany.

The group phase will take place on 22-24 July, with the semi-finals and finals on 26/27 July.

Handball has been mainstay of the biennial multi-sport event since its introduction at the 1995 edition in Bath, England.

The competition's final matches on 27 July will be streamed live on the European Olympic Committee channel.

Women’s 17 competition

Group A
France
Romania
Netherlands
Spain

Group B
Hungary
Switzerland
Czech Republic
Azerbaijan

Men’s 17 competition

Group A
Denmark
Germany
Serbia
Azerbaijan

Group B
Iceland
Croatia
France
Slovenia