“I’ve been walking around like a beggar for five years” – the desperate cry for help from Ukraine

Because of the ongoing war, the situation in Ukrainian handball is getting dramatically worse. The national federation (UHF) is faced with increasing problems and fears for its future. “After five years of war, numerous obstacles and an increasingly critical financial and logistical situation, our existence is threatened,” said the association’s secretary general, Alexander Gladun, to the “FAZ”.

Recently, the association even considered withdrawing from international handball. The reasons given were the drastically increased travel costs, difficult conditions at the border and long waiting times for international trips. For the time being, however, gaming operations should continue. The women's selection is sticking to its participation in the European Championships in December. The men are also scheduled to compete in the European Championship qualifiers in November.

Serious allegations against the world handball association

Gladun would like more support from the international associations. "I've been walking around like a beggar for five years. I'm tired of it. We're tired. We're an association with a great handball tradition and yet we're not being heard. Without the support of the associations from Germany, France, Austria, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and the Baltic countries, we would no longer exist," criticized the Secretary General.

The UHF had already made serious allegations in a letter to the IHF World Association and its President Hassan Moustafa in the summer. "In the past five years, we have not received any actual help from the IHF. Neither you nor any other representative of the IHF have visited Ukraine during this entire period. You simply have no own picture and no idea of ​​what is actually happening in our country," it said. The world association was asked for a statement.

Gladun finds it unfair that teams from Russia and Belarus are also allowed to take part in the upcoming U16 Women's World Cup in Morocco. “This is the reward for what they did,” complained the official. The IHF followed a decision by the International Olympic Committee in the summer and largely lifted the sanctions against Russian athletes.