Radio Romania International Sports club
The latest from women's handball
Florin Orban, 20.09.2023, 13:45
The Champions League in womens handballs 2023 – 2024 edition has now reached the second round of the group stage. Holders CSM Bucharest and runner-up team Rapid represent Romania in the competition. CSM has been included in Group A, while Rapid, in Group B. There are eight teams for each of the two series. The first two teams, in descending order, play straight in the Leagues s quarterfinals. According to a round-robin system, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th-placed teams will prove their mettle in the playoff fixtures. The four winning teams add up to the list of teams that have already booked their ticket for the quarterfinals.
After the first two rounds, both CSM and Rapid have a win and a defeat on their record sheet. CSM played their debut home game against Danish opponents Odense, 28-24, then sustained a 24-26 defeat by Bietigheim, away. In the first round, Rapid sustained a 28 to 30 defeat by Esbjerg of Denmark, then secured a 26-25 win against Polish team Zaglebie Lubin.
Fixtures counting towards the third round are scheduled at the weekend. In a match hosted by the Multi-Purpose Sports Hall in Bucharest, on Saturday CSM face Hungarian challenger Gyor, the team that will most likely win the current edition of the League according to the bookmakers. Gyor won the away game against French team Brest Bretagne, 24-23 and trounced Hungarian side Debrecen at home, 35-23. Rapid Also in Bucharest, but on Sunday, Rapid take on Danish team Ikast. The latter team provided the Leagues first great surprise, winning the match against the winners of the Leagues previous edition, 30-26. In the second round, Ikast secured another win, in France, 39-36 against Metz Handball.
On the European Handball Federations website, at eurohandball.com, posted on the page dedicated to the womens version of the Champions League there is a portrait of Cristina Neagu, who said she wanted to win the League yet again with CSM Bucharest. The internationally-acclaimed Romanian handballer went on to say she badly wanted to win the League to inspire her fellow handballers, to help them learn they can get everything if they work hard and think big.
