Switzerland recorded their best-ever finish at the IHF Women’s Youth World Championship, ending fifth, with a 37:31 win in the Placement Match 5/6 against Slovakia.

The People’s Republic of China delivered a big performance against Hungary, taking a 30:27 win, to finish seventh, also their best-ever finish in the competiton.

Placement Match 5/6
Switzerland v Slovakia 37:31 (17:15)

After an evenly-balanced start, Switzerland were the first to create some breathing room, using a fast break to open an 8:5 lead. Slovakia's own attacking mistakes proved costly, leaving them trailing despite a solid defensive display.

Switzerland stretched the gap to 12:8 by the 20th minute, with the W17 EHF EURO 2025 champions converting only 45% of their shots. Neither side could rely much on their goalkeepers either, as defensive work and missed opportunities rather than saves kept the Swiss advantage intact.

Slovakia finally found some grounding in the closing five minutes of the half. Led by Liliana Gogová, Kristína Görögová and Laura Kurňavová, they gradually closed the gap and went into the break only two goals behind, keeping the battle for fifth place wide open.

However, the second half quickly settled the question of the winner. Switzerland produced two 4:0 runs — the first immediately after the restart to move seven goals clear and another between the 40th and 44th minute to stretch the gap to nine (28:19).

Leandra Setz added several saves, while Nora Emmenegger and Lauryn Mierzwa continued to fuel the Swiss attack. Slovakia rotated heavily and gave playing time across the squad, with 12 out of 13 outfield players scoring at least once.

They managed to cut the deficit to 25:20 with 10 minutes remaining, but that was as close as they came. Switzerland continued to fight for every possession and kept their opponents at a safe distance to seal a 37:31 victory.

Lauryn Mierzwa led Switzerland with 11 goals, taking her tournament tally to 71 and finishing atop the competition's scoring chart, while Noelle Osterwalder and Nora Emmenegger added seven and six respectively. Liliana Gogová led Slovakia with six goals, bringing her tally to 44 as her side's top scorer at Romania 2026.

Switzerland secured fifth place in only their third appearance at the IHF Women's Youth World Championship, marking a huge improvement on previous finishes of 21st and 14th. Slovakia also recorded their best-ever result despite the defeat, adding sixth place to previous finishes of seventh, 13th, 19th and 26th.

Player of the Match: Lauryn Mierzwa (Switzerland)

Placement Match 7/8
People’s Republic of China vs Hungary 30:27 (18:13)

Following defeats against Switzerland and Slovakia, China and Hungary entered their final match at the 2026 IHF Women’s Youth World Championship with seventh place at stake. For China, it was an opportunity to secure their best-ever finish, improving on their previous results of 15th, 20th and two 22nd-place finishes. Hungary, meanwhile, found themselves in unfamiliar territory after claiming bronze at the previous two editions. They had finished lower than seventh only twice before — 11th in 2010 and 15th in 2014.

China looked far more eager to seize the opportunity and produced a blistering start, racing into a 5:1 lead. Hungary struggled to find solutions against Xiaoyan Wang between the posts, while Shuoyan Zhang pulled the strings at the other end and scored her fifth goal to stretch China’s advantage to 14:7 in the 19th minute.

Hungary lacked their usual defensive toughness, while mistakes and a lack of concentration hampered their progress in attack. Their first goalkeeper save did not arrive until the 20th minute, but Lara Körmendi then sparked an improvement, making six saves from 16 shots at 38% efficiency by halftime. Her efforts offered Hungary a glimpse of hope, but the attack failed to capitalise fully as China remained firmly in control and carried an 18:13 lead into the break.

Hungary returned with a completely different approach and immediately produced a 3:0 run to close the gap to 18:16. With Villő Kányai also finding her rhythm, they continued to reduce the deficit and eventually came within one goal. China had to weather the storm, rotating their goalkeepers and introducing Siqi Yu, whose timely saves helped keep them in front during crucial moments.

Eszter Léránt finally completed Hungary’s comeback by levelling the score at 26:26 with four minutes remaining. With China leading by just one goal at 28:27 in the 58th minute, the match appeared set for a tense finish.

However, Hungary undid much of their hard work with mistakes at the worst possible moment. Xiaoyan Wang returned between the posts to save a crucial penalty in the closing minutes, all but securing China’s historic seventh-place finish. The Asian side then pulled away to seal a 30:27 victory.

Shuoyan Zhang led China with nine goals, taking her tournament tally to 60 and ensuring that she will finish among the top five scorers at Romania 2026. Maja Takács and Nikol Litschauer scored six goals apiece for Hungary.

Player of the Match: Xiaoyan Wang (China)