A special match for a special player: Mesias faces idols at the 2025 IHF Men's World Championship
19 Jan. 2025

Less than two years ago, Joshua Mesias Västerlund became disillusioned with handball. But a phone call from his father changed everything. Now, the right back is representing Chile at the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship.
Since the draw for the preliminary round of Croatia/Denmark/Norway 2025 took place in Zagreb on 29 May 2024, Mesias could only think about the match between Chile and Sweden, scheduled in the second round in Group F in Baerum, Oslo.
Why was this match so special for the young Chile right back? Mesias plays for the South American side, but, as his name hints, also has Swedish heritage. His father, Claudio, is from Chile. His mother is Swedish. Joshua was born in Sweden, in Norrköping, and plays in the second Swedish league for IFK Karlskrona.
“My father talked with Aitor, our coach. I said I am going to give it a try and I loved it there. Now I am here, at the World Championship, trying to go against the best players in the world,” said Mesias, after Sweden won their second match at the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship, 42:30 against Chile.
Chile are currently trying to build a new generation, as the players who represented the side over the last 10 years have retired or are closer to retirement. They still have experienced leaders like the Salinas brothers or Erwin Feuchtmann, but the focus will likely be on the younger players in the near future.
Mesias is one of them. He scored four times in the first two matches, against Spain and Sweden, where Chile displayed an impressive brand of handball for the first 30 minutes in each match, going toe-to-toe with the two powerhouses.
He is the understudy of Rodrigo Salinas, who has 247 goals in his career at the IHF Men’s World Championship, having featured in every of the eight editions of the competition in which the South American side have played.
But at the 2024 South and Central American Men’s Handball Championship, where Salinas was injured, Mesias assumed the position of starting right back and became crucial for his side, at his debut in a major international competition. That started the domino effect which saw the 22-year-old right back feature against Sweden in the Unity Arena in Baerum at the 2025 IHF Men’s World Championship.
“It was an interesting match for me. Also because it was the last one of the day and it was played late, at 20:30. I had all day to think about it. I felt a bit nervous. But the conclusion was that it was just a match. But I can't deny that both national anthems touched me,” adds Mesias.
Did he sing both the Swedish and the Chilean national anthem?
“Inside, inside. In my heart, in my heart. It was special, man. It was really special. It was really fun to be able to play good too,” says Mesias.
He scored three goals against Sweden, against players he was watching on TV since he was a little kid.
“They're players in the Swedish team that I have seen when I grew up. And, you know, it's special to be able to see them up close and to feel them in the game. And also to feel my quality against them,” adds the Chile right back.
Half-Swedish, half-Chilean, Mesias scored three goals against Sweden, taking over the right back position from Rodrigo Salinas in the second half, as Chile’s captain had his tank empty, with a clear view on the last match of the group, against Japan, which could see Chile qualify for the first time for the main round of the IHF Men’s World Championship, provided they do not lose against the Asian side.
“There are a lot of experienced players in this team, who can teach you a lot. They know handball too. There is a lot to learn from this team,” says Mesias.
But the nerves were there all the time, especially as his parents attended the match, as well as his friends from Sweden, which called and texted Chile’s right back throughout the whole day.
“Against Spain, I had a lot of emotions. It was my first match at the World Championship. This match against Sweden was also very emotional. I had a lot of friends calling me. They called me all day, man. I could not answer. That would seriously disturb me,” laughs Mesias.
But in the end, everything worked out just fine and the Chile right back shared the court with Sweden’s finest, as Jim Gottfridsson, Albin Lagergren or Hampus Wanne played a big part in their team’s 42:30 win.
Now, the whole focus is for the match against Japan and if Chile progress to the main round, Mesias will be part of the best-ever performance of the South American side in the history of the competition.
“I believe that the team with more heart will win,” concludes Mesias.