Athlete of the week

Handball player Bianca Bazaliu

Steliu Lambru, 15.11.2022, 13:45

Attention-grabbing these
days is the ongoing European Women’s Handball Championship, jointly hosted by
Slovenia, North Macedonia and Montenegro. In a fixture counting towards the
first round as part of main Group II, Romania went against Spain. 10 seconds from
time, the scoreboard displayed a 27-all draw. In the last attacking bout,
Romanian inter Cristina Neagu sent the ball to Bianca Bazaliu, placed at the center
of the court. It took the latter a powerful, unstoppable, last-gasp 15-meter throw
to defeat Spanish goalkeeper Maddi Aalla and turn the fate of the game to the benefit
of her team, securing a 28-27 win for Romania. According to a post of the European
championship’s official site, ehfeuro.eurohandball.com, with a speed of 114.98
km/H, Bianca’s throw was the competition’s fastest, on a par with a throw by Slovenia’s
Ana Gros.

Bianca Bazaliu’s otherwise
unexpectedly successful throw, so precise and so forceful, prompted Radio Romania
International to designate her the Athlete of the week.

1.81 meter-meter tall and weighing
71 kilograms, Bianca Maria Bazaliu was born on July 30, 1997 in Slatina, a town
in Southern Romania. Bianca is an inside-left and centre player. She began her
career with LPS Slatina.
So far, Bazaliu has played for CSM Bucharest, Corona Brașov, Podravka
Koprivnica and Gloria Bistrița. In 2014, Binca Maria Bazaliu won the world
title in Macedonia with Romania’s juniors’ team. Back then Bianca scored 76
goals and was the competition’s second-best scorer. As an inside-left player, Bianca
received favorable votes for the tournament’s dream team. Since 2016 she has
been playing for Romania’s national seniors’ team, for which she scored 3
goals. Bianca Bazaliu’s record as a club handballer includes a European title,
in 2016, and two bronze medals, in 2017 and 2018. Bianca’s record also includes
4 Romanian champion titles and 3 editions of Romanian Cup in women’s handball. Bianca
Bazaliu also played a Romanian Cup and a Romanian Supercup final. (EN)