Denmark's emotional return to the Olympics semi-finals after 20 years sparks "hard to describe" feelings

Fourth at the EHF EURO 2020. Bronze medallist at the 2021 IHF Women’s World Championship. Silver medallist at the EHF EURO 2022. Bronze medallist again at the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship.

Denmark have cemented their status as one of the best teams in women’s handball for the last Olympic cycle, since coach Jesper Jensen took over and created a tight unit, with few changes between the major international competitions, a roster which was probably designed to peak at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.

So far, after six matches, Denmark are still alive and with a 75% chance for a medal, making it into the semi-finals, after the 29:25 win against the Netherlands, with an excellent gritty display, once again using their defence expertly to engineer a comeback, after starting the match with a four-goal deficit, 1:5.

Once again, the goalkeeping department shined for Denmark and limited the Netherlands’ back players Estavana Polman, Lois Abbingh and Dione Housheer to only nine goals scored combined between them from 30 shots. This time around, it was not Sandra Toft between the posts, it was Althea Reinhardt, who took over and saved 17 shots for a 41% saving efficiency.

“I think it's so fun as a goalkeeper to have this important feeling of feeling good on the court. For this match, I think it was nice to be there and the defence works really hard in front of me. I think it's hard to describe the feeling you have on the field, but it's a crazy feeling. It's like, invincible. You can get that feeling, but you also know that you have to focus on the next ball and you have to give everything because they are so good,” said Reinhardt.

She knew one thing or two about the Dutch players, having been teammates with Lois Abbingh or Bo van Wetering at club level, at Danish powerhouse Odense Handbold, and she put that knowledge to good use.

But Reinhardt could not have done it alone, and Denmark once again proved why they are one of the most consistent teams in the world right now. Sure, they are missing that gold medal, which has evaded them in last years, despite the Scandinavian side being close each time.

Back in 2022, in the final of the EHF EURO, they led by four goals against Norway in the 44th minute, eventually conceding a 25:27 loss. One year later, last December, at the 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship, they played once again against Norway, this time in the semi-finals.

Denmark had a five-goal lead, 14:9, at the break, controlled the match, were on their home court, but eventually conceded a 28:29 loss against their Scandinavian rivals, after a dramatic extra-time and a 15-goal outing from Norway’s left back, Henny Reistad.

Once again, a potential semi-final against Norway awaits Denmark, the only team which beat Jesper Jensen’s side in the women’s handball competition at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Have Denmark learnt something from the last losses?

“Of course, we have learnt some things,  but I also think that we have to put these matches behind us because it's a totally new game here and it cannot get any better than this. I think we have to believe 100% in ourselves and I think we can make it. But it's going to be hard and difficult. We have to play really good, no matter which our opponent is,” says Reinhardt.

Indeed, Denmark will be in the semi-finals of the Olympic Games for the fourth time in history, after Atlanta 1996, Sydney 2000 and Athens 2004. Each time, they have won their semi-final, going to the gold medal match, where they secured an unprecedented three-peat.

A team which had Anja Andersen, Tonje Kjærgaard or Camilla Andersen to count on was virtually impossible to stop. But the current iteration of the Denmark team also has plenty of stars at their disposal.

Just seeing Anne Mette Hansen or Sandra Toft failing to control their tears of happiness during their media duties after the win against the Netherlands, it becomes clear how much this means for Denmark.

“We're not finished yet, so we have to focus on the next game. But it's a really nice feeling and it's hard to describe, but I wish everybody could feel this feeling,” concluded Reinhardt after the first quarter-final of the women’s handball competition at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.