With a population of just over 54,000, the Faroe Islands are the smallest country competing at the 2025 IHF Men’s Junior World Championship — yet they are making some of the biggest waves. 

Nestled in the North Atlantic between Iceland and Norway, this remote archipelago has quietly become one of handball’s most inspiring stories. Against the odds, the Faroese have built a youth development system that now rivals traditional powerhouses, and their fearless performances on the global stage are earning them both respect and results. 

At Poland 2025, they’re not just participating — they’re contending. Two years removed from finishing seventh and providing the top goal scorer and the All-Star centre back, Elias Ellefsen á Skipagøtu, the Faroe Islands have now more aces upon their sleeve.

Enter Óli Mittún, a name already familiar for handball fans, who has been the top goal scorer and the All-Star centre back at the 2023 IHF Men’s Youth World Championship, the MVP and the top goal scorer of the M18 EHF EURO 2022 and the top goal scorer of the M20 EHF EURO 2024.

“It's always fun to be at major international competitions with the Faroe Islands. We have, I think, the best supporters in the world. Every time we are at a World or European championship, we always have almost the most fans. Maybe the hosts have more. So that's always fun,” says Mittún.

The geography of the country means in wintertime, the natural light is scarce. It also means that children get to spend their time trying more sports. According to Mark Lausen-Marcher, a coach in the Faroe Islands, who presented a webinar titles “The World’s Best Talent Development Environment” during the IHF Youth Coaches Handball Education Week at he 2023 IHF Education Weeks, the few arenas in the Faroe Islands are open at all times for children to go in and dabble in handball, making their first steps towards a professional career.

That means that the development is accelerated even further by having children try to play handball, learn the ABC of the game and nurture their skills in a controlled way. Another result is that children start playing with their best friends, forging relationships which are tested and durable.

“You play with your best friends. All of my teammates in this junior team are some my best friends. So the chemistry outside the field is very good. We grew together. The Faroe Islands are so small that we have all played against each other since we were eight years old. And trained together since we were maybe six. So it's so fun,” adds Mittún.

Another particularity is that many of the players are related. Óli’s sister, Jana, was a key member of the senior women’s team which made history in April, qualifying for the 2025 IHF Women’s World Championship, as the first senior team from the Faroe Islands to ever be present at a senior World Championship.

His father, Petur, was a coach for H71, the team which dominated the domestic league in the past years. His brother, Pauli, is also a handball player. Elias Ellefsen á Skipagøtu is Óli’s cousin. Ellefsen á Skipagøtu’s father, Jens, is a coach, while his mother, Gunn, is the President of the Faroese Handball Federation.

“We were so happy when the arenas were open, so we could go and play. Because sometimes it would not be open. But sometimes, it would not be open. Me and my brother and sister, and some friends, we would get the key from our dad and go play. I loved it,” says Mittún.

“I think the arenas should always be open to the kids. Because it's what I loved and I think also it's what they loved.”
Only that from a simple game, handball has now became a way of life for Mittún. His talent was immediately spotted in younger age category events and between 2022 and 2025, he moved to Sweden, where he played for IK Sävehof, a hotbed for young talent, well known for the activity in the youth sector.

At only 20 years old, Mittún was named the All-Star centre back in the 2023/24 season of the Swedish league, scoring 130 goals and dishing 65 assists. In the recently ended season, the centre back was the top goal scorer of the competition, with 176 goals, adding 73 more assists to his name.

All in all, a generational talent.

Now, Mittún, who has already made his debut in the senior team and has donned the shirt in a major international competition, the EHF EURO 2024, with the Faroe Islands already qualified for the EHF EURO 2026, is ready to make the next step.

This summer, he signed a three-year contract with Danish powerhouse GOG, a team also well-known for providing a platform for young players to develop, the team where Mathias Gidsel spent eight years.

The list of achievements for the Faroe Islands over the past years in handball is huge. At the M20 EHF EURO 2022, they became the first Faroese team to beat Denmark in a team sport at any age category. They also made it into the top-10 at both the 2023 IHF Men’s Youth and Junior World Championships. 

And the stakes will be higher, as Ellefsen á Skipagøtu has already made his full transition to the senior level and played for THW Kiel, while Mittún is due to follow suit after this edition of the IHF Men’s Junior World Championship.

“In Germany, at the EURO, there were 5000 Faroese fans in the stands. That’s 10% of the whole country. It is crazy. We got goosebumps. We hope to that get in the next EURO and then qualify for the World Championship, which will also be in Germany in 2027. That will be fantastic,” adds the centre back.

But now, his whole attention is on the match against Romania, the last in the preliminary round at Poland 2025. First, the Faroe Islands took a 33:28 win over North Macedonia and then salvaged a point in the 35:35 draw against Iceland, where Mittún scored the last goal, converting a penalty with the last shot of the match.

A win or a draw against Romania would see the Faroe Islands through to the next phase of the competition, once again making the Nordic side qualify between the top 16 teams in the world at this age category. And after two matches, the centre back is once again the top scorer of the competition, with 26 goals, despite being marked man-to-man for most of the second halves both against North Macedonia and Iceland.

“We always have a good attack, but the defence is something we need to work on, especially after matches against Iceland. But making it through to the main round would be something really special once again,” concludes Mittún.