2026 started with the USA women’s team holding open trials to identify new talent and bolster their squad depth and progressed to them winning gold at their continental championship – the NACHC North America and the Caribbean Beach Handball Championship – in April.

In St. Kitts and Nevis, the US side won all four of their games, defeating Canada (2-1) and debutants Antigua and Barbuda (2-0) in the preliminary group stage, before seeing off Mexico in a strong semi-final performance, 2-0 (17:16, 16:12).

They faced Puerto Rico in the final and after two sets – the first won by the USA (20:16) and second by the Puerto Ricans (24:22) – it went to shoot-out with the USA winning 6:2, Mira Chew top-scoring in the game, on 18 points and Rachel Wong (41 points) finishing as tournament top-scorer.

“Our open trials have been huge for the growth of our pool of players,” said coach Lyndon Suvanto to ihf.info. “Anna Lachenauer came straight from our January camp and her ability to pick up the game, being open to coaching, and her previous basketball background led to her winning the ‘Top Defender’ award in St. Kitts and Nevis. For a player who was making their debut, she more than exceeded our expectations.”

Lachenauer joins the experienced Staci Self and captain Missy Browne in a US squad which sees Rachel Wong leading on scoring duties with 2022 world championship top-scorer and All-star Team player Christine Mansour not in the squad for Croatia.

“The World Championship is going to be an amazing event for us with the level of competition jumping exponentially,” added Suvanto. “It is going to be a challenge for us but one that we are excited to take on.”

In Croatia, the USA will play former champions Greece and Brazil, plus Norway in their preliminary group as they aim to qualify for the main round for the first time in their fourth, consecutive appearance after finishing as high as 14th twice previously.

And their first round opponents are familiar. The US lost to Norway twice 2-0 at the last world championship – China 2024 – in the preliminary group and 13-16 placement round stage, as well as on home sand at The World Games 2022 and also lost 2-0 to hosts Greece at the 2022 event, in the main round and Brazil 2-0 in the preliminary round of Russia 2018.

But despite that record, Suvanto is hoping the squad togetherness will write new history for the team.

“It's an exciting time for us as a unit. Being able to compete against the best countries in the world is always a difficult challenge; however, it is one that we are very much looking forward to. The world championships in Croatia are going to be an amazing opportunity for our team, which features a strong mix of players with world championship experience and others making their debuts,” adds Suvanto.

“Croatia 2026 is an exciting opportunity for our women’s beach handball programme. Since taking over the role last summer, I feel like our programme and player pool has seen an influx of exciting talent from across the country with nearly every region of the United States now represented in the program. 

“One of my goals coming in was to help try and open up the opportunity for players from all areas of the country to compete for the USA and now we have athletes from New York, San Diego, Los Angeles, Seattle, Tampa Bay, Denver and San Francisco all representing the country in Croatia.

“We are looking to represent the country with pride. One of the biggest strengths of this core is our ability to overcome adversity and find solutions in each as a team, not just a collection of athletes, this is a true team environment with everyone trusting the person beside them.

“I am very proud of the work that the selection, alternates, and player pool have put in over the past year, as well as my coaching staff, including assistant coach Alex Browne and team manager Michelle Mensing.”

Coach: Lyndon Suvanto
Key Players: Staci Self, Rachel Wong, Anna Lachenauer, Melissa (Missy) Browne
Qualification information: 2026 NACHC Women’s North America and the Caribbean Beach Handball Championships – 1st
History in Tournament: 2004-2016: DNQ, 2018: 14th, 2022: 14th, 2024: 16th

Group at Croatia 2026: Group C: Norway, Greece, Brazil, United States of America