The first five matches of the seventh day of the 2024 IHF Women’s Youth World Championship saw two groups of the President’s Cup concluding, with Austria, the Republic of Korea and Argentina progressing to the Placement Matches 17-20, by winning their groups.

PRESIDENT’S CUP
GROUP I

• Austria vs Nigeria 33:14 (17:8)

GROUP II

• Republic of Korea vs Kosovo 31:21 (14:11)
• Canada vs India 21:24 (11:7)

GROUP III

• Chinese Taipei vs Argentina 21:34 (12:19)
• Greenland vs Kazakhstan 20:24 (12:12)

What happened: There was no stopping the Republic of Korea in Group II and Argentina in Group III, as both sides secured clear, double digits wins to clinch the first place in their groups and progress to the the Placement Matches 17-20.

The Republic of Korea, the reigning champions, had once again their top scorers, Jimin Kim and Yeseo Lee, bear the brunt of their forces, with five goals each, while Hyeonji Ku added seven goals, on their way to a 31:21 win, their third at China 2024. Kosovo’s Diona Dresh scored 10 times, but it was not enough, as her teammates could only muster 11 more goals, as the European side conceded their first loss after two consecutive wins.

13 of the 14 outfield Argentina players scored at least one goal in the match against the Chinese Taipei, as Helena Molina had six goals and five assists in another clear win for the South American side, their third in a row. Molina, who is Argentina’s top scorer in the competition, lifted her side to a 34:21 win, after a match which was totally dominated from start to finish, after the South American side took an early 6:1 lead and never looked back.

Austria recorded their largest-ever win in history at the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, a 19-goal domination of Nigeria, breaking their previous record, set against Angola two days ago, which was an 18-goal win. The European side won their third match of the competition, 33:14, with a complete performance, and secured the first place in Group I, facing Argentina in the Placement Matches 17/20.

The milestone moment of the day could have been Canada’s first-ever win at the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, breaking an eight-match losing streak. A good start against India – 11:5 after 25 minutes – saw Canada take the driver’s seat, but India bounced back in the start of the second half, using a 5:0 run to cut the gap. 10 goals from Sujata Sujata saw India control the match in the second half, when Canada did not score for nine minutes, enabling another 6:0 run for India, which was the pivotal moment of the match, taking the score from 20:16 to 20:22, and eventually sealing a 24:22 win.

Kazakhstan also broke their duck at China 2024, denying Greenland their first-ever win, as goalkeeper Kyzzhibek Galym had 15 saves, for a 45% saving efficiency. Pilunnquaq Petersen and Madeline Bjornestad combined for 15 of Greenland’s 20 goals, but the Asian side secured a 24:20 win, despite a 3:0 run to end the match for Greenland.

Stat of the day: 0 – Greenland and Canada are still without a win at the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, but will be able to finally break the losing streak when they feature in the Placement Matches 29-32.

What’s next: Austria, Argentina and the Republic of Korea are the first two sides which will head to the Placement Matches 17-20, while the Chinese Taipei and Kosovo are headed for the Placement Matches 21-24. Kazakhstan and India will be in the Placement Matches 25-28, while Greenland and Canada head to the Placement Matches 29-32. Austria will face Argentina in the next match, while Korea meet either Romania or Iceland.