Celebrating the International Handball Week between 12 and 18 July, the IHF.info website talked with several players regarding the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games, but also trying to find out what handball means for them and how they try to create a legacy in the sport.

“I remember all the stories my father told about the Olympic Games, he was there in 1996 with the Germany team, I was not born yet, but he told us all these stories and all of them were really amazing and he was really proud for playing at Atlanta 1996. And now, I am ready for the Olympic Games, too.”

Juri Knorr has just turned 24 years old, but he has always dreamt about the Olympic Games. His father, Thomas, himself a former handball player, felt the Olympics at Atlanta 1996, where Germany lost only two matches, but finished seventh. Four years later, Juri was born and he just knew that handball was going to be a crucial part of his life.

The centre back is now one of Germany’s top players – if not the one with the biggest potential – as proven in the previous two major international competitions, the 2023 IHF Men’s World Championship, where Knorr made the All-Star team as the best young player in the competition, and the EHF EURO 2024, where Germany’s star was named the All-Star centre back.

Knorr’s emergence on the biggest of stages, as a dual-threat player, who can also score plenty of goals, but also create fantastic assists for hist teammates, coincided with Germany’s resurgence. The European powerhouse ended up on the 12th place at the 2021 IHF Men’s World Championship and the seventh place at the EHF EURO 2022, but ended up fifth and fourth respectively at the next editions of the competitions.

“I think we are getting better and better, of course, this is the objective for all of us in the team. We have the Bundesliga, which has an amazing pool of talent, and in the national team we are all playing for each other, trying to be better, trying to improve and to seal good results in the end. That is the most important thing,” says Knorr.

Indeed, the spotlight has been on him, as he has been Germany’s top scorer at both Poland/Sweden 2023, where he had 53 goals, and at the EHF EURO 2024, where he had 50 goals. Both times, Knorr finished third in the top goal scorer standings, seven goals away from the individual title at Poland/Sweden 2023 and four goals shy of Martim Costa and Mathias Gidsel at the EHF EURO 2024.

“I do not agree that I need to be in the spotlight. We are all players of this team, we are all playing for the same objectives here. So, here, we all play our part, our role, trying to bring Germany as far as possible in all competitions, so we need to talk about our team as a team, not a collection of individuals,” adds the 24-year-old centre back.

Now, this Germany side is preparing to deliver a good performance at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, with an interesting mix of youth, like Renars Uscins, David Späth or Justus Fischer, winners at the 2023 IHF Men’s Junior World Championship, already bona-fide superstars like Juri Knorr or Johannes Golla, as well as one of the top goalkeepers in the world, Andreas Wolff.

The first challenge is to deliver the best performances in Group A at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where they will face four other European teams, plus a plucky side in Japan, which can always cause trouble in such an action-packed competition. Germany will face Croatia once again in this group, alongside Spain, Slovenia and Sweden, with the latter side taking a 34:31 win against Germany in the EHF EURO 2024 bronze medal match. 

“Being at the Olympic Games is absolutely fantastic. I mean, it is the pinnacle for every athlete, there will be over 10,000 athletes in Paris, so being here, just taking part, is something amazing. It is an honour and a responsibility, but I think all of us will do our best to try and perform at the highest level possible,” says Knorr.
 

Something from Juri Knorr's superb repertoire in Germany's 🇩🇪 main round victory against Argentina ✨#POLSWE2023 #sticktogether @DHB_Teams pic.twitter.com/T4UOknDHxU

— International Handball Federation (@ihfhandball) January 19, 2023

Of course, this will be no easy feature, especially as the Paris 2024 Olympic Games are scheduled after a long and gruelling season, where Knorr featured for club Rhein-Neckar Löwen in the German Bundesliga, arguably the best league competition in the world, and in the EHF European League Men, where the German side finished third, going all the way to the EHF Finals in Hamburg.

But Knorr is still upbeat, despite the challenge ahead.

“We all had some vacation, we could all recharge our batteries and come to the training camp for the national team with the best condition we could have. Of course, it has been a long season, but the focus clearly shifts to the Olympics. Like I have told you, it is a privilege to be here and play for the national team, especially in this competition, and we will surely give our all,” adds the centre back.

Prior to the Olympic Games, the IHF also celebrates the International Handball Week, which spans between 12 and 18 July and will be marked by handball activities throughout the world. For the players called up for the national teams, the celebration will mean more work and intense training for the biggest prize of all, with the focus switching on the race for a gold medal in Paris.

From his position, Knorr was asked about how he feels when his name is on the lips on many young players, who see him as an inspiration and a role model to follow, both on and off the court.

“The feeling is amazing, to be honest, because I was also a small kid trying to play handball, so I know how it is. It is something special, because I feel I have a responsibility and I try to be at my best every time, to encourage everyone to take up the sport,” concludes Knorr.