19.12.2011, 10:36
EHF EURO Silver medallist Sweden qualify for Olympics

The composition of the three women’s Olympic Qualification is clear after the World Championship.

With the XX World Championship in Brazil having finished with Norway as World Champion, the qualification picture for the 2012 Olympic Games in London is nearly complete.

Thanks to the Norwegian victory (current European Champion, too), Sweden have qualified directly for the 2012 London Olympic Games as European representative (Silver medallist at the EHF EURO 2010).

The following teams are guaranteed a spot at the Olympics:

Great Britain (host), Norway (World Champion), Sweden (European representative as silver medallist at the EHF EURO 2010), Korea (Winner of the Asian Olympic qualification), Brazil (Winner of the Pan American Olympic Qualification).

The African Championship (which is the Continental Qualification Tournament for London) will be played in Morocco from 11- 20 January. The winner will go straight through to the 2012 Olympic Games.

The six best ranked teams in the World Championship who have not yet qualified directly for London will play in one of the three Olympic Qualification Tournaments, which will be staged 25- 27 May 2012. In each competition, the two best-ranked teams of those tournaments (six in total) will qualify for the 2012 Olympic Games in London.

This is the current composition of those tournaments:

Tournament 1 (in France): France, Angola (both qualified through the World Championship 2011), Romania (best ranked team of EHF EURO 2010), Japan (Asian runners-up of Olympic Qualification).

Tournament 2 (in Spain): Spain, Croatia (both qualified through the World Championship 2011), Argentina (runners-up of Pan American Qualification), Montenegro (second best ranked team from EHF EURO 2010).

Tournament 3 (in Denmark): Denmark, Russia (both qualified through the World Championship 2011), AFR 2 (runners-up of the African championship, known 20 January 2012), Dominican Republic (third ranked team of the Pan American Qualification).

If Angola becomes African champions, the composition of the tournaments will change.

In that case Montenegro will not qualify as second best ranked team from the EHF EURO 2010, but as six best ranked from the World Championship. This means that Netherlands will be promoted as second best team from the EHF EURO 2010 (ranked eighth in Norway and Denmark).

The new composition, if Angola becomes African champions:

Tournament 1 (in France): France, Montenegro, Romania, Japan.

Tournament 2 (in Spain): Spain, Croatia, Argentina, Netherlands.

Tournament 3 (in Denmark): Denmark, Russia, AFR 2 (runners-up of the African championship, known 20 January 2012), Dominican Republic.

TEXT: Björn Pazen