Prior to the match against Spain, their second in the women’s handball competition at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, Angola had secured wins against 13 European teams. Two of those wins came at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, when the African powerhouse made the quarter-finals for the first time in history. Two others, against Great Britain and Greece, at London 2012 and Athens 2004 respectively.

In their debut at Paris 2024, Angola gave a run for their money to the Netherlands, despite losing, 31:34. It prompted the African champions to believe in themselves more, to correct their woes and deliver a flawless second half against Spain, signing another big surprise in the Olympic competition, a 26:21 win against “Las Guerreras”.

Captain Albertina Kassoma, who is taking part in her third consecutive Olympic Games edition, after Rio 2016 and Tokyo 2020, being a member of the team for the wins against Romania and Montenegro in her debut, was ecstatic after the win against Spain, which enables Angola to dream about another quarter-finals berth, which would be their second at the Olympic Games.

"It is an amazing feeling, I do not even have words to explain it. We worked very, very hard, and the reward was truly deserved, especially after we lost against the Netherlands, where we hoped to get more out of that match," says Kassoma.

A strong line player, which has been cutting her teeth in Europe in the last years, playing for Romanian side Rapid București, Kassoma is aware that her moving to play in Europe, like five of the other 15 Angola players selected for Paris 2024, which are all featuring in the Romanian league, has helped them grow.

However, her adventure in handball basically could have been totally different. In a prior interview, the line player stated that, at first, she did not like handball and only the wish of her father, which saw something in her, basically fuelling her start of her career.

“In fact, I never wanted to play handball, especially because when I started I didn't even find it interesting. It was practically an obligation; my father was the one who took the initiative out of the blue to make me play,” said Kassoma.

But Kassoma did take up handball and from that moment on, she became one of the most talented Angola players, eventually ending up as the captain of the national team, which has dominated the African continent over the last years.

“Of course, we have good teams in Angola, which have been dominating the continental competitions in Africa, but I think that the level is better in Europe, where you can play against some of the best players in the world and that helped us get even better, because you learn new things,” adds Kassoma.

But what was the secret of this Angola team, which has a new coach, Carlos Viver, who was Spain’s coach between 2017 and 2021, and plenty of new young players?

"Our secret is that on the court, when we enter to play, we are giving everything and, in the end, the results come. Our team is quite new, with new players, but when we enter the court, we always play with joy. We play hard, try to win, but we do not forget our joy," concludes Kassoma.

Joy came in the form of a win against Spain, but now Angola have to focus to get even more from Group B at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Matches against France, Hungary and Brazil will be no walks in the park, but the African champions might strike a surprise or two.