DenmarkCoach: Nikolaj Jacobsen
Denmark
Denmark
Team Players
Team Info
The first six appearances for Denmark at the Olympic Games were uneventful for the Scandinavian side, whose best finish was a fourth place at Los Angeles 1984. Their return after 24 years, at Beijing 2008, was the starting point of a fantastic uptick in their performances, with Denmark ending on the seventh place in 2008 and sixth at London 2012.
From that moment on, the Scandinavian side established itself as one of the powerhouses and one of the teams to beat in menâs handball, as securing the gold medal at Rio 2016 and the silver, after a final lost against France, at Tokyo 2020, proved their consistency.
But Denmark know how to navigate these type of competitions, as proven at the IHF Menâs World Championship, where they won the crown three times in a row, at Denmark/Germany 2019, Egypt 2021 and Poland/Sweden 2023. That is already, in itself, an otherworldly performance, a hat-trick of crowns, in an increasingly difficult competition.
Yet the Scandinavian side have done it in emphatic fashion, never dropping a match, with 27 wins and three draws, to set a new record in the world handball flagship competition. In fact, Denmark have finished on the podium in the last five major international competitions, with this fantastic generation delivering superb performance after superb performance.
But Paris 2024 will also be known as the swansong of Mikkel Hansen, a three-time IHF Male World Player of the Year, the top goal scorer at Tokyo 2020 and the MVP at Rio 2016. The left back, who has 1350 goals for Denmark, announced his retirement after Paris 2024, and Denmark will surely want to send him off on a high, with yet another Olympic gold medal in his cabinet.
Denmark also have plenty of firepower in their cabinet, with a fantastic line-up, which also has the 2023 IHF Male World Player of the Year, right back Mathias Gidsel, the All-Star left back of the 2023 IHF Menâs World Championship, Simon Pytlick, or legendary goalkeeper Niklas Landin.
With a 14-player roster at the Olympics, Denmarkâs coach, Nikolaj Jacobsen, will have had a tough choice to make and he delivered some surprises in the final selection, initially adding centre back Thomas Sommer Arnoldsen and right back Mads Hoxer, who both made the EHF Champions League Men final with Aalborg Handbold, selecting only one right wing, Niklas Kirkelokke, with Gidsel being able to cover on that position. However, Hoxer was dropped due to an injury, replaced by veteran right wing Hans Lindberg.
âWe are leaving to see if we can finish at the very top. We always do. But then we also know that it will be a tough challenge in that this time there is a rather strong host nation that will get great support on their home turf,â says Jacobsen.
In Group B, Denmark will have a rematch of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games, the 2023 IHF Menâs World Championship and the EHF EURO 2024 final against France, but will be favoured against other opponents, with Hungary, Norway, Egypt and Argentina completing the group.
âI have looked at the challenges we faced at the EHF EURO and taken into account the teams we have drawn. And then it's about finding some players who can play eight games in just 16 days when they come from an extremely long season and we only have 14 men available,â concludes Jacobsen.
Denmark
Coach: Nikolaj Jacobsen
Key Players: Mathias Gidsel (right back), Niklas Landin (goalkeeper)
Qualification for Paris 2024: 2023 IHF Menâs World Championship: Winners
Previous appearances: 1972: 13th, 1976: 8th, 1980: 9th, 1984: 4th, 2008: 7th, 2012: 6th, 2016: Champions, 2020: Silver medal
Group at Paris 2024: Group B: Denmark, Norway, Hungary, France, Egypt, Argentina