With less than one year before the start of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, the IHF Executive Committee has made a decision regarding the dates of the six Olympic Qualification Tournaments (OQT) – three for the men’s teams and three for the women’s teams – which will provide six teams for each handball competition at Paris 2024.

Currently, only two teams have earned their place at Paris 2024 – hosts France in each competition, Denmark, as the 2023 IHF Men’s World Championship winners and Norway, as the Women’s EHF EURO 2022 winners. A further four spots in each competition are open and will be decided via either the continental competitions, in the men’s case, and by the continental competitions and the IHF Women’s World Championship, which is set to take place between 29 November and 17 December 2023.

According to the decision of the IHF Executive Committee, the three Men’s Olympic Qualification Tournaments will take place on 14, 15 or 16 and 17 March 2024, while the three Women’s Olympic Qualification Tournaments are set to take place on 11, 12 or 13 and 14 April 2024.

The two different options allow the International Handball Federation to schedule the matches in the best possible way, avoid schedule clashes with local conditions, and fulfil the TV requests which will arise, as the qualified teams are known.

Each qualified team will be assigned to a row according to their method of qualification for the OQT. The schedule has been set in both the men’s and the women’s tournaments, with teams from Row 1 facing the teams from Row 3, while teams from Row 2 face the teams from Row 4 on the first matchday. In the second matchday, teams from Row 3 face the teams from Row 4, while teams from Row 1 face the teams from Row 2. Last but not least, teams from Row 4 face the teams from Row 1, and the teams from Row 2 face the teams from Row 3 in the last matchday.

Paris 2024 Olympic Games – men’s handball tournament

Spain, Sweden, Germany, Norway, Egypt and Hungary, teams ranked between 3rd and 8th at Poland/Sweden 2023, are automatically through for the Olympic Qualification Tournaments. Spain and Hungary will be in Tournament #1 (OQT1), Sweden and Egypt will be in Tournament #2 (OQT2) and Germany and Norway will be in Tournament #3 (OQT3).

However, the sides can still earn safe passage to the final competition in Paris via their continental championships later in January 2024, so further spots can open for the teams ranked lower at Poland/Sweden 2023.

The remaining two teams in each OQT will consist of two from the best-ranked continent at Poland/Sweden 2023, two from the second-best continent and one each from the third and fourth-ranked continent – a total of six teams. These are called qualification slots (QS).

OQT1 will have teams from the third (QS3) and fourth best (QS4) continent, OQT2 will have one team each from the best (QS5) and second best (QS2) continent, and OQT3 will also have one team each from the best (QS1) and second best (QS6) continent.

More info regarding the qualification process can be found here. (https://www.ihf.info/media-center/news/paris-2024-olympic-games-mens-handball-competition-qualification)

Paris 2024 Olympic Games – women’s handball tournament

The 2023 IHF Women’s World Championship will decide which of the teams will head to the Olympic Qualification Tournaments. According to the rules, teams ranked from the 2nd place to the 7th place earn a berth.

Only two sides have earned their tickets to Paris 2024, hosts France and European champions Norway, with 10 other spots ready to be taken over the next months.