Croatia’s women will play Denmark in the fourth and final women’s quarter-final of The World Games Chengdu 2025 on Sunday 10 August.

IHF.info caught up with Croatian defender Lucia Lesac after her side ending their preliminary group campaign with one win in their three matches – a final day 2-0 (15:14, 18:14) victory against Portugal, coming after a loss to China (1-2, 13:20, 16:14, SO 8:6) and Argentina (0-2, 16:18, 19:24).

IHF.info: You got your first win after losing to China and Argentina in your first two games, how are you feeling?

Lucia Lesac: The match was very difficult. We played against a really good team in Portugal. They have a lot of players who have played for their national team for a long time now, so they're a good squad. But we did a good analysis of them. This is our third big competition this year, after the IHF Beach Handball Global Tour stage in Tunisia and the European Championship.

Now is the time to show that we deserve to be here and that we deserve a good placement in quarter-finals.

IHF.info: After losing your first two games, how did you and the squad cope with that mentally?

Lucia Lesac: Before our game against Argentina we knew we had nothing to lose. We had a lot to win, because we they finished second in the world championship and that we can show the best of our game. 

The best games we played this this summer were against good opponents. Our goal against Argentina was just to enjoy the game and to show that our qualities are good enough to play the big matches.

We said to each other that the only thing we don't want after the match is the feeling that we didn't give enough of ourselves and that we hadn’t given all that we can.

IHF.info: How were you able to take that positive emotion into your game against Portugal?

Lucia Lesac: After the game against Argentina we realised that we are good enough to play with the biggest. We have it this whole summer, but in each game, we have that one goal that is not on our side. It's a little bit that some players are not experienced enough and some, maybe, don't have enough confidence. And if you are not winning, you don't have that in yourself.

But after this Portugal win and after yesterday's match against Argentina, when we came to the changing room I told the girls; ‘we are winning tomorrow, because the feeling that we had yesterday after the match wasn't a bad one, it was a good one’.

When we were giving heads up to Argentina at the end of the game, they said it was fun, a nice game. And it was. It was really fun, full of emotion. It was full of, I would say, blood, because none of our players went on the court and ‘it's Argentina’, we all said ‘we are Croatia’, and we can do it’.

IHF.info: Are you ready for the quarter-finals stage?

Lucia Lesac: We're ready, because as yesterday, as today, we have shown that we can play against anyone. If we are ready in our heads, if we have that spirit in our hearts, we can win against anyone. 

We had a great game on the Global Tour stage with Spain, who then won the European Championship and we had a great game with Argentina.

As long as we believe in our ourselves, no-one will be the factor besides us. If we are ready, in our heart, in our heads, and if we are the team that we really are, we can win without even thinking.

IHF.info: What has been your experience of The World Games here in Chengdu?

Lucia Lesac: It's amazing. The organisation, the people around us, Chinese people are really, really pleasant. We felt safe in all moments.

Yesterday, we had some sightseeing of the city. Everyone wanted to take a photo with us. They were really happy to see European nations in China, and we're happy to be welcomed like that, anywhere. 

So heads up for China, they also have a great national team in the women's competition. I believe they can do a lot of things. They showed that against Argentina.

I just want to say thanks for everyone in the hotel, in the courts, everyone is being really, really nice.