Community try their hand at new sport
The first time the sport has been made available to the community via Maccabi GB, the event took place in the top-class sports facilities of The Bushey Arena and saw 40 people in attendance.
An exhibition match began proceedings, with two of London’s elite Handball teams – Thames Handball Club and Islington Handball Club – brought in to demonstrate how to play the game, the playing positions, basic skills and techniques.
After the game, which both Handball Clubs tied at 12-12, the participants were put through their paces by renowned Handball Coach, Frank Wuggenig, himself a member of the Jewish Community.
Speaking about his involvement in the event, Jordan Elf (17) from Barnet, said, “When I saw Maccabi GB was hosting a Handball event I jumped at the chance to get involved! I’ve played other sports before but, to be honest, a lot of them can get quite boring and repetitive. This was brilliant as it was non-stop action and has loads of goals. I lost count of how many I actually scored! The best part was that most of the people here had never played before so it shows how easy it is to pick up. I hope Maccabi GB do this again!”
Maccabi GB’s Marketing Communications Manager, Adam Goldsmith, spoke about why the Taster was established, “We were approached by Frank – one of the top Handball coaches in Europe – to bring the sport to Britain’s Jewish people as there was a clear gap. It is one of the most popular sports in the world and is taking off rapidly in the UK, so we wanted to provide an opportunity for members of the Community to try it out for themselves.”
He continued, “For most players here it was their first taste of the sport, having heard about it via our communications channels, and we were very impressed with the ability on show. We must thank Frank and all the two Handball Clubs for showing us the ropes. The day was a real success and it just shows the efforts Maccabi GB goes to in order to constantly bring sporting opportunities to the Community.”
Following the success of the day Maccabi GB is looking to create ties with a local Handball Club with the possibility of entering a team into a London Handball League and, eventually, with the long-term goal of having a team represent Team Maccabi GB in international Jewish sports tournaments.
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