Norway’s consistency at the IHF Women’s World Championship has been nothing short of amazing. Spain 2021 is the 20th time the Scandinavian side have taken part in the competition and their medal record is otherworldly, having secured one 50% of the time.

They have won gold three times, at Norway/Denmark 1999, Brazil 2011 and Denmark 2015, while also taking the silver medal thrice and the bronze medal four times, and have never finished lower than ninth. 

Adding eight EHF EURO trophies since 1994 means that Norway are clearly doing something right. And because we wanted to find out exactly what the ingredients are for their success, we talked to Bent Dahl, Romania’s assistant coach.

Dahl, 51, is a Norwegian coach, who knows the system inside out, having just recently moved to Romania, last February, to be Adrian Vasile’s assistant at the helm of the Romanian women’s national team. Eventually, in October, he took over club powerhouse SCM Ramnicu Valcea, trying to instil new life into a side that was heading in the wrong direction.

Dahl will be on Romania’s bench when they take on the reigning European champions on Tuesday, in Group C’s final game at Spain 2021. So he is in a unique position, trying to beat Norway at their own game.

So what is the blueprint for Norway’s success?

Step 1: It all starts from a young age

“Sports in Norway are a big thing. Handball, especially, is very popular and it has, of course, something to do with our success at club and, of course, at the national team level. We, in Norway, have a very active lifestyle, therefore kids are usually encouraged to take up sports. Many are starting to play handball from a very young age and are slowly building up their careers,” said Dahl to ihf.info.

There is, of course, a so-called masterplan, where coaches from the U12 to senior teams follow the Norwegian Handball Federation’s instructions to create a baseline and to teach players to play the Norwegian way, efficient and aesthetic handball.

“The thing is that young players are forged both mentally and physically in a certain way. But there is also the aspect of the game, of a healthy way to spend your pastime activities and become more disciplined. There are not many rules, but Norway do tend to do everything in a certain way,” added Dahl.

“Everything is taught in schools and high-schools, because handball is a very popular game. So we are getting good players, hungry for performance, from an early age,” said the Norwegian coach.

Step 2: Making sacrifices

The Scandinavian model is somewhat different than in other parts of Europe and in the world. For example, young Romanian players are always dreaming about a professional career right after they finish their high-school education. In Norway, things are a bit different, with high-profile players also splitting their time with normal jobs.

Henriette Mikkelsen, a gold medallist at the Olympic Games Athens 2004, and one of the best all-time Danish right wings, shared her playing time with a job as a teacher. Swedish centre back Isabelle Gullden, who retired from international handball at the end of 2020, was also dividing her time between her handball career and her daily job before playing abroad for CSM Bucuresti and Brest Bretagne Handball.

“I would not say these players are making sacrifices, but they are, in a way. The cost of living in Norway, for example, because we are talking about Norway now, is very high, so parents need to help the young players. What we are seeing now is Norwegian players trying to play abroad more, we have Henny Reistad in Denmark at Team Esbjerg, Malin Aune and Emilie Hegh Arntzen at CSM Bucuresti, in Romania, and four other players from the Norwegian team at Győri Audi ETO KC, in Hungary,” said Dahl.

Yet the mentality is still the same, having been forged in their first years in handball, running hard, playing the attracting fast-paced style they have been taught and a very good defence on top of that.

Step 3: Embrace continuity

Do not make a change just for a change’s sake. In the case of the Norway women’s senior national team, the success has been linked to only two coaches – Marit Breivik and Thorir Hergeirsson. Together, they have won 25 medals at the IHF Women’s World Championship, the Women’s EHF EURO and at the Olympic Games, 13 of which have been gold.

Breivik took over in 1994 and spent 14 years as the team’s coach until 2008, when her former assistant, Hergeirsson, took over. By comparison, their next opponent at Spain 2021, Romania, have changed their coach 14 times in that period, with Gheorghe Tadici taking over three times, while Swedish coach Tomas Ryde had two stints in the past five years.

“This is very important for Norway, because they trust in their system, rather in a person. Because even when results do not come their way, and this happens, as they are not playing alone, the coach is still there, trusting the blueprint, the plan at hand. You will not see Norway change their style just because they lost a game,” said Dahl.

Step 4: Why is Norway different

The cost of living in Norway is well-known to be one of the highest in the world, therefore sacrifices have to be made, as documented above. The model for the Norwegian handball is different than, let’s say, Romania, where all the clubs in the first league are funded publicly, by the city hall or local councils.

The clubs are dependent on their sponsors, who are usually paying the salaries of the players, ensuring that things do not go awry. Surely, there are teams who are finding themselves in financial difficulties, as former DELO EHF Champions League winner Larvik HK did. But, in general, things are, once again, consistent and well-run.

“Everybody knows what they are doing and that is a big plus. Yes, the path to greatness is difficult, but where is it not?” said Dahl.

Step 5: Can you beat Norway?

“Of course,” said Dahl, confidently. The main question is, surely, how. What is the devious plan devised by a coach to help beat such a strong team?

Romania were close at Denmark 2015, when they took Norway to extra time, in one of the all-time classics at the IHF Women’s World Championship. Eventually, Norway went on and won the semi-final, 35:33, but more recently, Romania took a convincing 31:23 win against the Scandinavian side at the EHF EURO 2018.

Since then, Norway have stayed true to their selves, while Romania have changed their coach and have only seven players, most of which were only fringe players in 2018, still in the squad.

“To beat Norway, you have to run like hell. Put your running shoes and try to stop them at whatever costs, when they go on the fast breaks,” said Dahl.

Indeed, only two teams at the 2021 IHF Women’s World Championship, the Netherlands (53 goals) and Sweden (40 goals) have scored more than Norway’s 33 goals on fast breaks in the first two matches.

“Basically, Romania need to be strong in defence, be very patient and take care of the ball in attack and we can have a chance. But Norway are very strong and very experienced,” concluded Dahl.

Boasting a Norwegian in the staff will surely be an advantage for Romania, but ultimately, it comes down to the players. Norway have scored more goals than the Romania side and conceded less in the first two games. They also boast superior experience, with a 29.0 year-old average age in the roster, compared to Romania’s 26.3.

And, by average, a Norwegian player has 110 international matches under her belt, while Romania’s have only 27.7. This is a big difference, which cannot be easily compensated.

“We need to play with our hearts. And maybe we can make it happen,” said Dahl. That’s the intangible that makes handball beautiful. And impossible to predict at times.