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XIXth Women’s Handball World Championship Diaries

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It was our last day here in the XIX Women’s Handball World Championship.  We had the usual morning activities which started with breakfast, followed by a short team meeting to discuss game strategies.  Lunch was early [11 a.m.] and departure from the hotel was at 12 as the Team was playing at 2 o’clock.

The Team wishes to express their appreciation of sponsorship which kitted them out for the WC.  Before the warm up, I took a photo of a number of the girls showing sponsors’ products ie  hummel, Skins and Sweaty Betty.
 

Team members pose with sponsors attire

We also had a Team photo before the game against Chile.   The Team was in high spirit and was looking forward to their challenge.

Team Photo

The girls gave the game all they’ve got but were not able to match their opponent’s efficient shooting at 6 metres. Match Report.  After the game, Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita spoke to the Team.  He said:  “It is not the outcome we were looking for.  We will hopefully achieve it in the world championship in two years’ time.  Outcome is just an outcome.   Process is the important thing we need to keep in mind.”

At this point, I am pleased to mention that at the close of our participation in this WC, Australia was ranked number 6 in “Team Fair Play and Solveig Sorensen [Vice Captain] was in equal 34^th place in the Top 40 Goalscorers.

We went back to the hotel straight after the game.  After dinner, there was a team presentation. This was also attended by the ‘Aussie WC Supporters’ who also brought chocolates, biscuits and drinks.  The players thanked and presented the team’s management -Katsu Kinoshita [Head Coach], Vernon Cheung [Assistant Coach], Michelle Thomas [Manager], Kristin Schuhknecht [Physiotherapist], Raelene Boulton [Masseuse], Violi Calvert [Media & Public Relations, and our Attache Kavin a token of their appreciation. 

The highlights of the program were the showing of photos covering the Korea tour and the WC, which was compiled by Cathy Kent, Team Captain.  Katsu sang beautifully an Italian opera piece “Amarilli; although we did not understand the lyrics, we felt the emotion and enjoyed his lovely voice.  Missy [Melissa Mellor] and Jemima Harbort shared some of funny anecdotes on some of the team members. A modern dance was also performed by a number of the girls.  The Team also thanked the supporters for cheering on the team throughout the tournament. Kavin also took a turn in expressing his appreciation of the friendship of the group.

Kristin’s comments:  “I am only new in my position but I appreciate the way everybody made me feel as part of the Team.  I admire how the Team, despite losing games has remained positive and gave their best in the succeeding games.  Overall, they have done well.  However, they still have to become fitter and do more work on muscles and cardio.  I wish everyone the best and thank them for the friendship throughout the tour and WC.”

Michelle read out a poem she composed, which had snippets of ‘info’ on each member of the team and management, and covered the Korea tour and the WC.  Below is an excerpt from her poem:

"... Memories of this trip will last ever after.

Thank you all for saying ‘yes’

You’ve worked to reach your goals and

your spirits are the best.

Life is a gift – accept it

Life is a game – play it

Life is an opportunity ­ take it.

Live your life, achieve your goals, Life is a mission

To do yourself justice, you must fulfil it

And now the time has come to go our separate way

I thank you once again for our special day

And hope you now all think of me as your friend.

I wish you all Merry Christmas and safe travel home

And look forward to hearing from you on my new phone!...”

Before I sign off, I also wish to thank those who sent note of appreciation and our friendly Webmaster for all his help with the edits, formatting and publishing the diary notes and the game reports.  Most of all, thanks to our readers who stayed with us throughout the tournament.

To the Australian Women’s Team, all the best for the future.  You made us all proud.  Now the preparation starts for the next WC. 

Cheers and bye for now. Zai jian!

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

We had a cheerful start today.  The team  went around where the WC Aussie Supporters were having breakfast, to greet Solveig Sorensen’s mother, Inger Paterson tillykke med fødselsdagen [happy birthday in Danish].  Judging by her reaction, Inger was pleasantly surprised and touched, especially when Solveig presented her with a cute teddy bear cake and a single red rose.

Solveig presenting her mother, Inger,  with a rose and teddy bear

After breakfast, the Team had the usual recovery session in the swimming pool and the gym for some of the girls.  Then a Team meeting was held by Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita.  The Team watched the game which Congo played and analysed its players’ style of play.  He reminded the Team that “in this game, we need to be certain where we want to be.  He also discussed game strategies based on what they just viewed.

Then it was time for lunch.  The athletes eating place in the hotel provides opportunity for interaction between teams.  Coaches compare notes and exchange dvds of matches, and players socialise. Towards the end of lunch I noticed that Missy [Melissa Mellor] was enjoying a chat with one of the Brazilian players.  Later that day, they exchanged training shirts as memento of their meeting.

'Missy' and Brazilian friend

As the Team was playing the first game of the day at three o’clock, we left the hotel at 1.30 p.m.  Today the Aussies played against Congo. Match report.

Before the Team warmed up on court, we had a team photo against the Wuxi WC promo mural.

Team photo in front of the Wuxi WC promo mural

Despite the outcome of the game, the girls were happy with their performance considering that they would have played eight games in nine days.  By this time, tiredness seems to catch up with them.  On a positive note, as at end of today, Australia is ranked 8^th in ‘ Fair Play’ in the competition.

The Team want back to the hotel straight after the game. The WC Aussie Supporters who are staying in the same hotel as us, travelled back to the hotel.  Inger thanked everybody for her surprise birthday greetings and in return she gave us a box of chocolates which we enjoyed.  The team had short a recovery session which was followed by dinner.  Towards the end of dinner, Milly [Aminta] Thomas named Solveig Sorensen as the “Player for Day”  for her strong performance and consistently scoring for the team.

Then it is early to bed for tomorrow’s Placement match against Chile. This is all for now. Thank you for keeping us company.  Shieh shieh.

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Ni Hao!  We had another ‘relaxed’ schedule today.    After breakfast, the Team had the usual recovery session in the swimming pool or at the gym.  This was followed by a team meeting.

At the team meeting, Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita asked the players to give their comments about the previous day’s match and to what they [individually or a team] may not have done which they could improve on.  Overall, there was a consensus that there is a need to lift the energy level and communication on court.  Suggestions on how to do this were shared.  Katsu then asked the players to list down a number of questions, and for them to write the answers which they could read as part of their preparation for the upcoming games and also to discuss during individual meetings with him.

Team meeting

Katsu’s told the Team that they should know what preparation each one of them need to do, and that they need to be spot on and confident with themselves.  He emphasised the importance of maintaining the level high in their ‘energy bottle’ so that they are also able to share it with other members of the Team who maybe feeling down.   He asked everyone to share what makes them “lift” and to keep doing that so they also in turn lift the Team.

Before the group broke up, the Team had a couple of “meadows wink” games to help with the group dynamics. Team Captain Cathy Kent and Missy volunteered to be the ‘detectives’.  It was good to see the girls laughing together and having fun.
 

Cathy Kent playing the detective

Apart from lunch, everyone pretty much had the afternoon ‘free’ from 12.45 p.m.  A few players went to nearby shops while the rest watched dvds of previous game.    The WC Aussie Supporters went by train to Shanghai to do some retail therapy.  I declined their kind invitation to finish off items to send the Webmaster who has been fantastic with doing the edits, layout and upload of diary notes and game reports.  Afterwards, I went for a short walk and went to the gym.  It was only for a short gym session as one could only bear so much hearing the continuous play of ‘Frosty the Snowman’ and ‘Jingle Bells’.  It was also making me all the more miss home.  To cheer myself up, I went to the hotel‘s spa massage place.  A 90-minute pampering for the small price of A$38!

Then it was time for us to leave for the stadium for the Team’s second President’s Cup Game.   It was a tough game but the Team was happy with what it was able to do. Match Report.  The girls were happy and there was singing in the dressing room afterwards.

It was straight to dinner when we got back to hotel.  At the end of dinner, Madeline McAfee named the next ‘Player of Day’ “someone who always fight hard both in defence and attack, lifts the Team with her positive and encouraging ways; she is also an awesome room mate”.  This player is “Milly” [Aminta] Thomas.

Today's comments are from Allira Hudson-Gofers who plays in the Pivot/Back position. Allira who is twenty seven years young, works as a Patent Attorney.   She started playing handball four years ago because her husband David Hudson was playing handball with some friends and she used to pick him up from training.  She was also part of the Women’s Team which competed in the 2007 World Championship in France.  For that WC, her mother Arlene and father Tao Gofers, and husband David were part of the WC Aussie Supporters.

As a player involved in the game, Allira has done a great account of the team’s performance yesterday against Brazil, which we are sharing below:
 

Allira Hudson-Gofers

“In preparation for this game, we were lucky enough to have played Brazil in the Seoul Cup a few weeks ago. The day of this game was spent watching the Seoul Cup match against Brazil and identifying positive aspects of this game to replicate in the upcoming game.  From this, we made a number of team goals:

- turn around early in defence
 - when attacking, move to help your team mates. 
- Draw defenders when you have the ball and move with a purpose and the ball
-    patience and determination to take better shooting options.

Defensively, we had some good passages at play.  Our focus on turning around earlier helped us organise more quickly.  Communication and focus on the ball in defence are things to work on.   

Brazil came out strong with an aggressive 3-3 defence. We took a little bit of time to get our rhythm in attack but when we started running and bouncing through their defence, there were some goal passages at play.  Our creative attack also resulted in a few intercepts and dropped balls but the movement was great to see.”

So another day has gone by in the Team’s 2009 WC campaign.    We look forward to the next two games.   I hope you keep us company to the end of the tournament.

Good night!  Wan an!

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Hello from our second ‘home away from home’.  Today was a ‘relaxed’ day for the Team.  Breakfast was at 8.00 a.m.  Afterwards, the Team had a recovery session in the swimming pool with the exception of Cathy Kent and Missy [Melissa Mellor] who did gym work instead.

Cathy and 'Missy' at the gym

Then the recovery session was followed by a team meeting.  Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita asked the players to give their individual comments on their performance so far and any suggestions to address parts where they felt could have been better.  His overall reminder to the girls was that they need to be patient with their attack and defence, and the need to control technical mistakes.  He also stressed the need to be guided by the team culture and to continue to support each other.

Team Meeting

Towards the end of the meeting, the Team played two fun games to help stir the energy level and group dynamics.  “Milly” [Aminta] Thomas had the group to play games of “thumbs up” and “meadows wink”.  The first game involved closing their eyes, putting their thumbs up and guessing who turned them down.  The other game involved the ‘detective’ [ the “it” person] guessing who was the person winking at the players to ‘kill’ them. 

The rest of the afternoon was ‘free time’. So after lunch, I ventured out to the nearby shops with some of the WC Aussie supporters – Iubu Kelly, Janet McAfee and Sam Smith.  Sam who is Veronica Kelly’s boyfriend is the latest reinforcement in the group.

Sam Smith and Veronica Kelly

To help us with telling the taxi driver where we want to go, we showed him a hotel card with Chinese writing which specifies the shopping area we are to be taken. Once we got dropped off, we checked out the shops and bought a number of small items only. Iubu bought very important items for the supporters’ use when cheering the team - a couple of metal dishes and wooden spoons. Before we headed back to the hotel, we had a photo taken by Sam to record our short break from handball activities.

Downtown shopping

We got back at the hotel, with enough time to get ready to leave for the stadium.  For this part of the tournament, the Aussies would be playing matches at the Wuxi Sports Center Gym.  WSCG has facilities for multiple sports including basketball, volleyball, table tennis, badminton, handball, gymnastics, martial arts, boxing, fencing and trampoline as well as space for large-scale art performances.   The venue which was opened in 1994, has a seating capacity of 5000.  Aside from our dedicated WC Aussie Support group, there were only a few people who watched the game; we had more people at our local national championships.

The girls were in high spirits.  If they were nervous playing again against Brazil, they did not show it.   The outcome of their rematch was as expected, albeit with a slightly better score for the Aussies compared to their last game they played.  They were also happy to make it to a two-digit score.  Match report.

We went straight to dinner upon our return at the hotel.  Towards the end of dinner, Mary Kelly named the next ‘Player of Day’ as “someone who had a good performance in today’s match and was not afraid in defence to take hits, to help the Team” – Madeline McAfee.

So as another day closes, we look forward to the challenges that await us tomorrow.

Bye for now. Zai jian

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Hello everybody! Da jia hao!

Today we moved from Zhangjiagang to Wuxi [ pronounced as 'wú-xī-shì'].  Wuxi which was founded 3,000 years ago, has an estimated total population of 4.32 million.  It is a city on the Yangtse River between Suzhou and Nanjing, half way between the cities of Shanghai and Nanjing.  As one of the birthplaces of China’s national industry and commerce, Wuxi is one of the fifteen economic centres in China.

We had the usual breakfast at the start of the day.  At the close of brekkie, Rosa named May Kelly as yesterday’s Player of Day for the way Mary fought hard in the game against Thailand and aside from being awesome in defence, also scored for the Team.

Then it was time to pack and get ready for our move.  Before we boarded our bus, the Team was requested by Kavin [our Attache] to sign a World Championship promo poster as a memento for the volunteers.

Poster signing

We tried not to get too worried when we saw the drivers of the buses to take three teams to our next hotel, huddling over a map and boisterously discussing [debating?] how to get to our destination.  As we weaved our way through light traffic, minus the time we nearly missed a turn, we relaxed and enjoyed the scenery.  It was great to have the WC Aussie supporters travel with us.

About mid-day [less than two hours drive], we got to our next hotel.  As the rooms were not ready, we went straight to lunch.  There was more expansive buffet of Chinese and international cuisine.  Half hour after lunch, a group of the girls had massage at the hotel’s Spa Club while some went for a walk with Katsu and Vernon.

Two hours later we were able to get to our rooms.  The rest of the afternoon was ’free time’ until dinner at 6.30 p.m.   We had a bit of ’scare’ when the lift we were on, went past 1st floor and stopped between floors.  We had to use the emergency phone and somehow got reassured by a Chinese guy that somebody was coming to fix it.  Somehow we managed to get it going back up and we got out at level 10 to take the other lift.

I wished I went with the girls for massage, as hearing snippets of what happened at the massage session was hilarious.  As usual these happenings involved the ”Team’s Livewire” Missy [Melissa Mellor] – her learning and singing ”Jingle Bells” in Chinese and her masseuse ”falling off ” as she worked on the massage table, etc. 

At the end of dinner, it was Mary Kelly’s turn to name the next ”Player of Day”.  Mary named this to be ”someone who had not been able to partiipate as much as she wants to, but has remained very positive and supportive to the Team.”  This was Gizelle van der Merwe.

Gizelle showing off her cup for 'Player of the Day'

Today’s comments are from Solveig Sorensen who is the Vice-Captain.  Solveig  became part of the Australian womens team at the start of 2007 when she attended a training held in Höör, Sweden by Jakob Vestergaard, who at the time was the Team’s Coach.  Later that year she participated in 2007 Oceania Qualifyer followed by the WC in France November 2007, also the 2009 Pacific Cup.  This is Solveig’s second WC.

Solveig has played handball since 1995 in Germany and Denmark and she is currenttly playing in Team Haderslev KFUM in the Danish 2nd division.  Her mother Inger and father Viggo Peterson are here to cheer Solveig and the Team in their WC campaign.

Solveig with her parents

Solveig’s comments 

Solveig Sorensen

“We have improved in each game. The new girls and the more experienced ones play together well, and everyone is doing their very best on and off court. Even though we did not beat Thailand, I think we played well for 55 minutes.

Now we will concentrate on the President’s Cup and learn to be even better handball players.

We had a good travel/rest day today. At the new hotel in Wuxi nearly everyone had a massage of back and legs which was really nice.   We have settled in and I have chosen to share some of my Christmas decorations with all the other players, so now everyone has a little heart on their door to bring out the Christmas spirit.

I love playing with the girls and I will miss them when I have to go back home in 5 days. Hopefully we will manage to come together some time next year instead of having a 17 months break.”

Hope you stay with us to the end of the tournament.  .Shia chi zai jian.

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Today was our last day here in Zhangjiagang.  Tomorrow we are moving to Wuxi where the Team will play games for the President’s Cup stage of the tournament.   We have enjoyed our stay here but look forward to our next “WC home”.

The focus of the day was to prepare for our last game in the Preliminary Round.  After breakfast, the girls did the usual recovery doing stretches and swimming pool session.  Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita convened a team meeting in the latter part of the morning The Team watched a video of the previous games of Thailand and discussed game strategies.  The girls were in high spirit and looking forward to their game. From the meeting, we went to lunch which was followed by a ‘visiting or rest time’.

As we're playing the first game of the day’s competition, departure from the hotel to the stadium was at 3.30 p.m.  The strong bond among the girls was evident as they got ready for the game.  They even helped each other plait their hair and do bit of massage.  There was exciting energy in the dressing room while Katsu had the final team briefing before the warm up.  His message was “girls, today could be your page in Australian handball history.  It is up to you to do what you need to do to take it.  There will be no mistakes out there, as whatever you do would be what you thought to be the best option.  Work together as a team, stick to our moves and achieve our goals.” 

Final Team briefing before the game

Well, we could say that ‘this was the one that got away’ but not because our girls did not put all they’ve got. Match Report. The match was close, with the Aussies even having a small edge over their opponent five times in parts of the first half. However, the outcome could be attributed to the better preparation by the Thailand team.  For the six months leading up to the world championship, the Thailand team trained three times during the week.  They have a full-time coach who trains them.  Resources were available for them to do all these.  In comparison, our girls had two training camps leading up to the Korean tour.  Aside from taking time off work or studies, they paid to attend the training camps and to get to the world championship to represent their country.

We wish to appeal to the business community to go into partnership with the Australian Handball Federation to provide the much-needed funds for development of handball and to enable our teams to be more competitive in the sports world arena.

Before the game, we took the opportunity to take a team photo.  Australia, here is your national Women’s Team doing you proud as they battle it out with the world’s best handball teams.

The Australian National Women's Team

After the game, the girls understandably felt some sadness but also satisfaction that they have done what they could.  Their spirit was revived again as they watched the game between Ukraine and Austria, and had the opportunity to talk with their new-found friends from the other teams.   There were some anxious moments when Rosa was feeling the after-effects of the earlier hard hits on the court.  The girls were true warriors.

Today’s comments are from Victoria [“Tori”] Brunsberg, who is based in Sweden.  Tori, who is eighteen years young and plays for Enköpings,  got involved in handball when she was ten years old through friends who were playing it.  Her friends invited her to try it; she liked it and has kept going.  In late 2008, Joanna Blondell who is also based in Sweden and was part of the Australian Women’s Team, sent Tori the email address of Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita’s so Tori can express her wish to trial for the women’s team.  Tori then became a member of the Women’s Team which competed in the 2009 Pacific Cup; this led her here in the world championship. Tori’s Australian connection is from her mother whose family is from Port Macquarie, New South Wales.   Her mother Ronae, father Urban and younger brother Bryson are part of the WC Aussie support group.

Ronae, Byrson and Tori Brunsberg

Tori’s Comments

Tori Brunsberg

“The training camp in Korea has been a great experience for our young team.  That was what we needed before the world championship.  One of the good things we had in the camp was  the daily ‘recovery’ session which is much better than what I am used to.

The World Championship has been fun although we were losing.  It is a great experience and we just need to keep the focus at the same time to be happy.  We are going back to Australia with a very positive experience.”


 

Goodbye ZNG!  We will  remember you. Wo men hui yong yuan ji ju ni

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

It was “usual business” activities today.  As the game was not till seven o’clock in the evening, we did not have to be early for breakfast which was at 8.30 a.m.  Brekkie was followed by the usual stretch exercises/treatment and recovery session in the swimming pool.  Then it was lunch and visiting time for the supporters.

Talking of supporters, they have been awesome from day one of the tournament.  They even get the crowd joining in the Aussie chant of “Aussie Aussie Aussie, oi oi oi”.  As the girls keep fighting on court, they cheer them on to the finish.  Below is a photo of the Aussie supporters as they get ready before a game.

The Australian Supporters

Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita held a team meeting later in the afternoon.  After the girls had a snack, he showed a video clip compiled by Cathy Kent [Team Captain] and the girls.  The video clip included highlights from the games the team has played so far.  It showed a variety of brilliant shots and defence moves by the girls.  The message to the girls was “you can do it!”

Then it was time to leave the hotel to keep the day’s “important appointment” – play against Ukraine.  In the dressing room, the girls were in high spirit as they went through the game strategies and during warm up.  We could feel the girls’ pride in representing their country as they walked onto the court and as they sang the country’s national anthem “Advance Australia Fair”.

Team singing National Anthem before game against Ukraine

The game versus Ukraine again showed steely determination by the girls. Despite the outcome, they were happy with what they achieved.  Match Report.

After the game, Kristin Schuhknecht [Phsiotherapist] got the task of drawing a player’s number, for the random drug testing. Being drug tested was added to the WC experiences of Jessica Fearnside as Kristin drew her number. Of course she had nothing to worry about and passed with flying colours so to speak.

The Team watched the next game, which was between Austria and Russia.  The Aussies enjoyed socialising with the Austrian camp while they watch the game and supported the Austrians.  I wonder what joke Vernon Cheung [Assistant Coach] shared with a couple of the Austrian girls as Missy [Melissa Mellor] took time off talking and laughing with them to seriously analyse the play.

Vernon Cheung( Back to Camera ) joking with Austrian girls as Melissa Mellor watches the game

At close of dinner, Jemima Harbort chose as the ‘Player of Day’ someone who “inspires me as I watch her always give her best; despite getting many hits, she never complains and keeps going and remains positive right through to the finish of the game.  This player is Rosa Boyd.”

Today’s comments are from Madeline McAfee who is the youngest in the Team at age of 16 years.   Madeline got into handball in 2008 through school sport.  She started learning it in one of her Physical Education class unit.  Then she participated in all schools competition in Queensland.  She was coached by Mary Kelly in the u16 team which played against New South Wales.  Mary and her brother Dan came to Madeline’s school and taught her handball skills; now she is playing alongside Mary.  Madeline was part of the u17 Australian girls team which participated in the New Caledonia tournament in 2008.  After that she was selected as part of the Australian Women’s Team which competed in the 2009 Pacific Cup, which led her into this WC.  She wishes to continue to train with Katsu and keep building her skills.  Madeline’s mother Janet has come to the WC to support Madeline and the Team.  She is one of the Aussie supporters revving up the crowd.

Janet and Madeline McAfee

Madeline’s comments

Madeline McAcfee

“The Korean tour was really good to get the team get together and work on our attack and defence. The team really bonded through that experience.  It was good to get a few games before the world championship. It has been good not only to watch great handball but also to play against the world’s best.  It has been a great learning experience that I will use to develop my handball skills further.

In our game against Ukraine, we fought hard in defence especially when there were only four girls on court.  Everyone fought hard until the end.”

 

Another day in our 2009 WC experience.   Tomorrow we play our last game in the Preliminary Round.  Wish us good luck.  Ju wo men min tian yi chie shuen li.

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Today, we had a ‘free’ [no game] day.  After breakfast we were supposed to leave at 9 a.m. for a two-hour tour of Zhangjiagang, but this got delayed a bit because our bus was caught up in traffic coming to the hotel.  This gave us time to catch up with some of the Aussie supporters who joined us in the tour.  It was also good to talk with members of the other teams while we were waiting.  Silvio Ferrari who is the Photographer of the Austrian Team was one of them.  Like XIE Bin, Silvio has been kind to take and send me photos of the Aussies.

Violi Calvert and Silvio Ferrari

The girls are enjoying their participation in this world championship.  They certainly earn great admiration from the other teams with their passionate play and especially when it is known that the Aussies pay their way to represent their country in this significant sporting event.  They appreciate the sponsorships that help their participation possible. We have shared a lot of photos showing the girls in their hummel gear.  Today, we have a photo of them wearing Skins.

Team proudly wearing their 'Skins'

Then, it was time for the tour.  Missy [Melissa Mellor] had the group doing a ‘pretend racing game’ with the Austrian team whenever our bus either goes past or alongside their bus. The bus ride showed a progressive and well-laid out city with plenty of green space.  ZNG is a new city which developed from a farming town in the mid-1980s following the economic reforms.  In 1993, it was selected to be a unique model city for all of China.  Our first stop was at the ‘Mirror Lake’ about fifteen minutes away from our hotel.  A boardwalk which goes to the centre of the lake enables one to walk around and enjoy the scenery of the city skyline complimenting the lakeview and the park on its edge. 

Group photo at 'Mirror Lake'

Then it was back in the bus for our next stop at the cultural and art centre.  This time, Missy ‘convinced’ Kavin [our Attache] to share Chinese jokes and a song, which were enjoyed by everyone.   At this stop, we saw lovely paintings, calligraphy, collections of match boxes, and impressive scale model of the city.

Team at Cultural and Arts Centre

The girls were in high spirits and showing great camaraderie.  A slight rain did not dampen the mood of the group as we headed back to hotel for lunch.  Then later in the afternoon, they had court training.  As usual, the girls had treatment or massage after dinner where necessary.

By the way, I am pleased to share that as at the end of three matches of the competition, Australia is ranked in equal fourth position with Romania in Team Fair Play.  This is based on the number of warnings, two minutes suspension and expulsion, if any, given to teams.

Cathy Kent chose as the Player of Day as  “someone I got to know very well in the last few weeks not only awesome as a person but also as a handball player, and who I consider to have a bright future in handball”.  This is none other than Jemima Harbort.

We certainly had a lovely day. Wo men jin tian guo de zen hao.

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Today started like another ‘ordinary’ day with the usual schedule of activities ie breakfast, recovery, team meeting, lunch followed by visiting time for family and friends.   From then on, somehow it felt ‘different’.  This could be because of the anticipation of the game against Russia happening at nine o’clock in the evening.  For one thing, it was not usual for the Team to have afternoon tea at its team meeting but due to the timing of the game, this was necessary.

Afternoon tea in the meeting room

After having the meeting, the Team left for the stadium at 7.30 p.m.   The girls were in high spirit and were looking forward to the match against a strong handball team.   At the light comment made by Assistant Coach Vernon Cheung that the team were about to have a ‘David and Goliath’ match, I remarked that maybe we will have the right sling shot tonight.  Someone also joked maybe a bottle of vodka might help.

At the dressing room, the girls were pretty pumped up as they went through the game plan with Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita.   Then it was game time.

As expected Russia won the game, but not without a courageous fight by the Aussies to the end of the match Match Report.   The match highlighted a stellar performance by WC first-timer Jemima Harbort.    It must be her genes!  Her mother Kim was also a goalkeeper in her handball playing time and is still involved in the sport.  Her father Stephen who is the President of Queensland Handball Association still plays, same as her brothers Tim and Chris.   The Team did a special cheer for Jemima in the dressing room.   Another ‘youngster’ who was acknowledged for her good performance was Madeline McAfee.

Jemima Harbort in action against Russia

At the end of dinner, Allira Hudson-Gofers named Cathy Kent who is Team Captain, as the “Player of The Day” for being always positive and encouraging to everyone before and during training and games.

Today’s comments are from Rosa Boyd and Gizelle van der Merwe.   Rosa originally played soccer and got involved in handball in 2004 when Mick Bressington mentioned to her that  the Queensland Junior Girls Handball Team needed a goalkeeper.  She got in the Team and then participated in the junior national championships and afterwards got in the Women’s Team.  This is Rosa’s third world championship as she was part of the Australian Women’s Team as Goalkeeper at the 2005 Women’s WC in Russia and played in the Back position at the 2007 Women’s WC held in France.  She was Captain of the Women’s Team at the 2009 Pacific Cup.  This is the second WC for Rosa’s mother Helen as she was also at the 2007 WC to support Rosa and the Team.

Rosa Boyd with her mother Helen

Gizelle van der Merwe got into handball through playing for her school at the schools’ championships in 2006 after which she got into the New South Wales Junior Girls and into the Senior Women’s Squad and the NSW Seniors Team.  Due to shin splint, she could not play during 2007.  In 2008 she resumed training and got selected to be part of the Junior Women’s Team which participated in the 2008 Junior World Cup held in FYR Macedonia.  She then trialled and got selected to be part of the senior women’s team which participated in the 2009 Pacific Cup.  She is one of the players who are 2009 WC debutantes and although a knee injury has restricted her participation in the tournament, she has remained positive and assists the Team in the way she can. 

Their comments are below:

Rosa

Rosa Boyd

“Throughout the tour, we have developed and grown as a team.  The progress we have made since our first games in Seoul is really good. We are all proud of our performance so far and can’t wait to see what else we can achieve this campaign.  We are a very young team with a very bright future.  Hopefully we will continue to develop as a team and the sport of handball in general.

Tonight against Russia was really pleasing.  They came out firing from the start and we were a little overwhelmed.  However, we fought hard and found gaps in their defence.  We also banded together really well in defence and prevented them from scoring easily.  It was awesome to see the spirit and fight of the team until the very end.”

Gizelle:

Gizelle Van Der Merwe

“The tour for me so far has been a very enjoyable and positive experience.  I think one of the best things about being a part of this young team, is that we all support each other both on and off the court, especially with the way we fight for each other in defence.

I’ve been very proud to see everyone develop from when we started in the cold training court at Korea, to playing against some of the world’s best teams here in China.  Although I have been able to train or play as much as the other girls, I’ve learnt a lot from seeing a higher and more experienced level of handball and I’m looking forward to seeing everyone improve their skills and enjoying every minute of the experience.”

 

The Team certainly had a hard day at the office today but felt happy with its overall  performance.  So despite the outcome, the day finished with happy hearts.  

Thank you for keeping us company. Shieh shieh!

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Today was a happy day for us.  It started on a cheerful note as after brekkie, Kristin Schuhknecht [the Team’s Physiotherapist] had a lovely surprise for everyone.   She had us sit on the floor, take our shoes off and closed our eyes [and warned not to be peeking].   After excitedly waiting, we were told to open our eyes. We were surprised that we all had a little parcel tied with ribbons of German colours placed in one of our shoes! 

Kristin explained that this is in accordance with a German custom, which observes 6th December as Saint Nicholas Day, Nikolaustag. The night before, children put a shoe in front of their bedroom door so that St. Nicholas can deposit his gifts. Nicholas lived in the fourth century and had a reputation for secret gift-giving and is the patron saint of sailors, merchants, archers, children and students.  Everyone had fun opening their bag of goodies and appreciated Kristin’s lovely thought.  Great start of the day!

The Team celebrate St. Nicholas Day with a German custom

As part of preparation for today’s match, the Team did stretches and then went downstairs in the swimming pool for more exercises later in the morning.  We had to assure the pool attendant that they were not going to put their heads in the water, as he was concerned about them not having swimming caps on.

Stretching in the hallway of the Hotel

Then we had lunch as usual at 12.30 p.m.  More yummy Chinese food!  Talking about food, the Aussies’ breakfast had been ‘enhanced’ with a tube of Vegemite [brought by the Kelly’s] being merrily passed around.  I also want to note that it is quite a friendly atmosphere in the hotel restaurant where all the teams have their breakfast, lunch and dinner.  Everyone says hello and talk to each other.  Even Team Coaches exchange dvds of games.

Later in the afternoon, Katsu had a Team meeting to get feedback from the players on how they felt during the previous game and reinforced team cultures.  They also set three goals for the match against Austria.

Then it was time to go to the stadium, but not until after being ‘zapped’ [tested] again by the Health officials for swine flu symptoms.   The girls were all pumped up for the game and valiantly fought throughout the game versus Austria.  Match Report. The Aussie supporters also had reinforcement with the arrival of Solveig’s mother Inger and father Viggo Peterson.

After the match, the Team watched at the stadium the next game which was Ukraine vs Angola. 

Australian Team watches Ukraine play Angola

At close of dinner, Mary Kelly named Allira Hudson-Gofers as “Player of Day” for her relentless effort of chasing each ball and being always first back in defence. 

Today, I am sharing with you comments from Aminta Thomas and Jessica Fearnside.  This is the second world championship for Aminta as she also played for Australia in the 2007 WC in France.  Aminta got introduced to handball by her brothers. Her older brother, Michael, was part of the Men’s Team during 2007 and 2009 WC, while younger brother Joey is in the New South Wales u21 team.  Jessica, on the other hand, got involved in handball through her participation in the school competition when she was in Year 9 in 2004. Then she was in the u18 State Team in Year 10 and in the Senior Women’s Team which participated in the 2009 Pacific Cup.  Her brother Mark was in the u17 Boys team last year but he now is involved in playing cricket.  Her father, Scott is the President of NSW Handball Association and the AHF Treasurer.  Below are the two players’ comments sharing their experiences so far.

Aminta

Aminta Thomas

“Although it was really cold during our training camp in Korea, it was really beneficial because we got to work as a team for the first time, practising our moves and defence.  Playing against other Korean teams was an awesome experience and helped with our preparation.

I have enjoyed every moment on tour.  The team is very close; when someone is down, there is always someone there to cheer them up. 

The first two games of the world championship has been a good experience.  We are developing as a team every match we play.  We have achieved our goals set out for each, so that is excellent.  We are here at the WC to develop our team and that is what every player is focussed on.”

Jessica

Jessica Fearnside

“The tour so far has been a great experience.  I believe each game we play we are gradually improving.  The Seoul Cup was a tremendous opportunity to prepare ourselves for the world championship games.

Our team plays hard and fights for every opportunity.  We just have fun together playing the sport we love – that makes for a great atmosphere and a great team to be a part of.”

 

 

This brings us to close for now. Talk to you again. Shia chi zai jian.

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Ni Hao! Hello again. Somehow I thought today started with a different ‘feel’ to it.  This was most probably due to today being the start of the Preliminary Round so there was a feeling of ‘wariness’. This is our second day in Zhangjiagang [“Chang-chia-kang”] which is located on the southern bank of the lower reaches of the Yangtze River.  “ZNG” is  a modern and progressive city with an estimated population of 1,200,000.

After breakfast, the Team had court training.  Compared to yesterday’s training, today the girls played with more intensity and energy.  They were also more vocal on the court.  So at the end of the training session, everyone felt good with their preparation.

It was a lovely sunny day so before boarding the bus to go back to the hotel, we took the opportunity to have a Team photo in front of the Zhangjiagang Sports Centre.  The sports centre, which was built in 2005, has a capacity of 3750.

After a few minutes that we were back at the hotel, it was lunch followed by ‘free time’.  During the free time, I met at the hotel lobby a number of the Australian supporters.  All the way from Australia, we had Steve and Iubu Kelly [parents of Mary and Veronica], Helen Boyd [mother of Rosa], Janet McAfee [mother of Madeleine], Tiffany Chen and Marie Louis [Sydney club handball players].

Tiffany, Violi and Marie

At three o’clock Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita convened a Team meeting for follow up discussion of the training session in the morning.   Half hour later, we went back to the sports centre.  The game was to start at five o’clock so the team to warm up.  Before we boarded the bus to take us to the stadium, Health officials were ‘testing’ everyone for symptoms of swine flu, using a small device pointed on the forehead and sometimes in the ear.  So everyone dutifully went through this process and was relieved to be allowed to leave with the team.

As the Team prepared in the dressing room, Team Captain Cathy Kent shared motivational sayings written on strips of paper which were displayed on the wall.  They were all good but I picked but I felt this one had special message to the Team: 

“Keep your dreams alive.  Understand to achieve anything requires faith and belief in yourself, vision, hard work, determination and dedication.  Remember, all things are possible for those who believe.”

Head Coach Katsu’s final message to Team was they could achieve the team goals if they stick to the agreed moves and to enjoy themselves as they strive to meet these goals.

Sadly, the Aussies lost its re-match game against Angola and first match in the 2009 WC.  Match Report.

At the post match team dinner, Raelene Boulton named Mary Kelly as the ‘player of day’ for always being cheerful as she goes about the training sessions and offering her help to others, and congratulated her for scoring a goal at today’s match.   This leads nicely to the next part of this diary as I have requested earlier the twin sisters, Mary and Veronica to provide their comments on their experience and the tournament.  

As far I know the Kelly sisters are the first twin sisters to be part of an Australian women’s team.  It was interesting to hear that they were born a day before their mother Iubu was to have a scan and up to that time, it was not known that Iubu was having twin girls.  So much to everyone’s surprise, at about seven minutes apart, Veronica was born, Mary also ‘arrived’.  Their parents are here to support them in the WC, with Veronica’s boyfriend [Sam Smith] arriving next week.

Steven, Mary, Veronica and Iubu Kelly

Below are their comments.

Veronica Kelly

“This is my first time to the world championships and so far I have been excited and in high spirits to play alongside, against and watch some of the greatest women handball players in the world today.  I felt the Team played very well in the Seoul Cup sticking to our team goals and preparing ourselves for the bigger stage, being the World Cup.

I felt the team played very well against Angola.  We kept fighting until the very end and we know they would be challenging, having played them a week ago.  We stuck to our goals and performed the best we could.”

 

Mary Kelly

“Our experience so far in Korea has been a very good preparation for our Team.  The Seoul Cup was a great learning experience for all and has helped us to get a feel for the atmosphere we will experience at the World’s.

I believe our Team, although a young team, is prepared for our games ahead.  I am looking forward to seeing how each of us grow and learn as players, individuals and as a team.  I am really excited to have my twin sister in the Team as well.  We are both enjoying this great opportunity to play together on the world stage and are hoping it shows in our games. Just from the start of our tour, you can already see huge improvements from all our players.  Taking on the best players in the world may seem like a daunting experience, but having been to a World Champs before and knowing what our Team is capable of.

Our team got off to a great start for the first match of the World Champs against Angola.  We played to our strengths and keep fighting the entire game.  We had great support from the bench and the crowd.  We are looking forward to our next game against Austria.  We know it will be tough, but are confident that we will show the Great Aussie fighting spirit.”

As this day closes, we look forward to tomorrow.  Cheerio for now. Zai jian     

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

It was a sunny day for our move today.  Brekkie was at 8 a.m. and pick up by the bus to transfer to our official world championship hotel was at 11 a.m.  It turned out that it was only about ten minutes away.  After checking in and taking our things in our room, we had early lunch.

This morning we met our Attache, Zhao Nan [nicknamed ‘Kavin’].  Kavin is on his last year doing a degree on Social Welfare.  He is applying to do further studies at the Australian National University in Canberra, Australia.  He mentioned that there were so many who volunteered to be Attache to the Australian Team and he is very glad to have been successful in his application.

After a couple of hours or so, the Team had its training in Nanjing Gym where the Team will be playing its Preliminary Games.  Head Coach Katsu Kinoshita put the Team through the set moves and a couple of practice games.  Assistant Head Coach Vernon Cheung concentrated on training with the goalkeepers.  Kristin Schuhknecht [Phyiotherapist] engaged Melissa Mellor in some exercises.

During training, I met XIE Bin, who is Director of Olympic Service Department, Handball, Hockey, Baseball, Softball Administrative Centre, General Administration of Sports of China.  I have mentioned our website to him and he has kindly offered to send photos during the tournament for our use. 

Then same as yesterday, it was back to the hotel for dinner followed by a Team meeting. First off, the Team had a couple of concentration test games.  This was followed by Katsu playing video messages which the Team appreciated very much.  These were from Berrick Barnes of the Australian Rugby Union Team, The Wallabies and Jonathan Brown who is the Captain of the Australian Rules Football Team Brisbane Lions [Australian Football League].

During the Team meeting, both Kristin and Raelene Boulton were providing treatment/ massage to a number of the players at the back of the room.  Each of the players was asked to give their assessment of the training session.  Katsu addressed some of the points to be conscious about and highlighted the positive aspects for the players.

Jemima Harbort, Goalkeeper, who is twenty-two years young and plays for the Northside Panthers in Brisbane, represented Australia in the 2009 Pacific Cup, shared her thoughts:

‘I have enjoyed the build-up preparation for the World Cup.  The Seoul Cup was my first experience of being in an international game atmosphere against some of the world’s best teams ie Brazil, Korea and Angola.  I have enjoyed the atmosphere and game time I have received and look forward to playing in the WC with the Australian team.

I expect myself and the Team to perform to the best of our ability against the world’s best handball teams and show other countries about Australia’s fighting spirit.

I am looking forward to being a part of the WC games and experiencing this with the great team we have this year.  I also hope to observe the different styles of goalkeepers so I can learn more about goalkeeping at the highest level.”

Team Masseuse, Raelene Boulton, who also doubles up as Right Back/Centre Back/Left Back on court, is participating in her fifth world championship.  She represented Australia in 1999 [Norway], 2003 [Croatia], 2005 [Russia], 2007 [France] and 2009 [China].  Raelene also played for Australia at the 2000 Sydney Olympics. 

Raelene’s extensive experience in world championships is also backed by playing at high level competition for clubs in Norway, Denmark, Sweden and France during 1997-2007.  She came back to Australia in February 2008 to open her business Absolute Body Solutions [massage, pilates] in the Gold Coast, Queensland. 

“We have very young team.  I hope to help the girls with my experience in the previous world championships.  Our strength is defence and we need to work on our attack and hopefully gel better at the tournament.

Our strength is defence and we need to work on our attack and hopefully get better in the world championship.

At this stage, I am uncertain about continuing to play but happy to be involved as a Masseuse Therapist and Fitness Coach.  I am also interested in helping with the coaching.”

This is all for now.  

Wish us luck for tomorrow. Wo men min tian yi chie shuen li.

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Hello everybody 'da jia hao!'  It is lovely to talk to you again and share today’s happenings.

We had a ‘relaxed’ day today.  Breakfast was not till 8.15 a.m. so we had a bit of sleep-in.  Brekkie [Australian slang for breakfast] was a combination of Chinese food consisting of fried rice, steamed vegetables, dumplings, eggs [boiled and fried], etc, and toasted bread with butter.

This was followed by short ‘free time’ and then training at 10.30 a.m.  While the Team went for a run, I had a walk around the block as it was a sunny day.   Most people must already be at work as there was hardly traffic on the road; but just the same, drivers honked incessantly.  I guess they must be warning bike riders, who merrily zip along most without helmets on.

Then it was lunch time.  While most persisted with using chop sticks, there were those of us who gave in occasionally using knife and fork.   It is great to have Vernon Cheung [Assistant Coach] who can speak a bit of Chinese and know about Chinese food, do the ordering for us.

Following lunch, players had turns in having treatment and massage undertaken by Kristin Schuhknecht [Physiotherapist] and Raelene Boulton [Masseuse]. 

At 4,30 p.m. it was time for the Team to go for a run to the park.  I decided to join Katsu Kinoshita, Vernon Cheung and Mellisa Mellor for a walk instead. We ended up walking through the markets. I have seen Missy [Melissa’s nickname] fearless on-court but saw her wary as she looked at the eels and other weird-looking fish thrashing about in basins of water.  The walk had some light moments for her; as we walked past a hairdresser’s shop, everyone enthusiastically waved to her.

Each day, a team member takes turn to name the ‘Player of the Day’.  Today, Tori Brunsberg chose Missy for this recognition for the latter’s positive way of dealing with being out of action because of her injury and continuing to provide support to the Team. So when we got back at the hotel, I had a chat with Missy to get her comments on her experience so far with the Team.  She said:

 “I was sad when I injured my wrist as it meant I could no longer participate in the Seoul Cup and the upcoming world championship.  But I am grateful for being allowed to stay with the Team, as I also learn from watching the girls play. The support everyone has been giving me has been fantastic.  I feel that I could now talk to any of them, when I need to.

I thoroughly enjoyed the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the 2009 Seoul Cup.   I was impressed with how strong the Koreans support their team.  The atmosphere in the stadium during each game was pretty amazing.  I am looking forward to supporting our Team in the world championship and also to watching the final world championship games with Mary and Veronica Kelly.  I am also looking forward to do a bit of sightseeing and shopping with them.

This is my first trip to an Asian country. While I am enjoying another culture, it also made me appreciate more what I take for granted back home”.

Missy and I had just enough time for our chat to go to a Team meeting   At the meeting Kristin spoke about her assessment of the players’ fitness and what needs to be done to be better prepared for the world championship.  Katsu went over the team culture and values previously agreed upon by the Team.  He highlighted that not all handball players get the chance to play for their country, and that they are special, but reminded the team that this comes with duty and responsibilities. The team also discussed game strategies.

Then it was time for dinner.  It was fantastic to have more delicious authentic Chinese food, although a couple of players admitted to already missing mother’s cooking back home. One could be excused for thinking that “that’s it for the day”.  Well not so...after dinner, Katsu had a short meeting with each player to give them feedback on their fitness and performance.  By the time this was finished, it was rather late in the evening but everyone feeling happy about the day that has just gone by.

Tomorrow we will be moving to our ’official WC hotel’. Bye for now. 'zai jian'

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

Greetings from China! 'lai zi zhong guo de wen' . 

It is great to be here for  the XIX Women’s Handball World Championship.    Before anything else, here’s a brief information on the 2009 WC host country:  Its total land area is 9,596,960 square kilometres which makes it the fourth largest country in the world. It has the world’s highest population which has been estimated in 2006 to be 1.3 billion; in comparison, Australia’s estimated population is 22 million.  It is well-known for numerous historical and cultural sites and relics such as the Great Wall of China, the Silk Road, Beijing, Xian and the Museum of the Terra Cotta Warriors to name a few.

I am delighted to have the opportunity once again to be with the Australian Women’s Team and in collaboration with the Webmaster, share with you informal diary notes on how the Team is going both on-court as they represent Australia and the Oceania region in this significant world handball event, and off-court including our interaction with the organisers, the Media and the spectators.

As flights from Sydney to Shanghai arrive early evenings, I came yesterday to rendezvous with the Team about mid-day today when they arrived from their training camp in Korea.  It was fantastic to see familiar smiling faces and get lots of hugs which wiped off feeling I had from yesterday of being alone in the midst of so many people.  It was also great to get re-acquainted with Kristin Schuhknecht [Physiotherapist] whom I met at the last Senior National Championships and to meet Michelle Tomas [Team Manager].    I have not seen Vernon Cheung [Assistant Coach] since he and his now-wife Nicole [nee Hughes] moved to Beijing in 2007 so it was great to catch up with him too.

Team Vice-Captain Solveig Sorensen was in another flight which arrived an hour later so we waited for her.  The camaraderie in the team was evident as some of the girls played a serious card game of ‘snap’.  I spotted Team Captain Cathy Kent watching a video clip in a portable dvd player, Milly Thomas relaxing wired up to her ipod and Gizelle van der Merwe who occasionally took a break from reading a thick pocketbook to eat and share lollies [Aussie slang for candies or confectionery].

While waiting, I also took the opportunity to have a chat with Kristin to find out a bit about her.  Kristin who is from Germany, has completed Masters in Physiotherapy before she came to Australia two years ago.  She played handball for at least thirteen years and was Back and Left Wing player in a club which was in the Third Bundesliga in the latter part of that time.  She has worked for 11 months in Subiaco Sports Massage Clinic, which provided physiotherapy services at the ‘Rethink Drink’ Senior National Championships held in Perth, Western Australia in October 2009.  At the close of the tournament and with support from her employer, Kristin volunteered to be the Physiotherapist for the women’s team.  No doubt her comprehensive experience in handball goes hand-in-hand with her qualifications and work experience in providing superb care for the girls.

Kristin said that the Team’s overall fitness is good and that with the fitness exercises, massage and ice baths, the players would be able to cope with the challenges of the world championship. She is very optimistic about Gizelle’s recovery from Achilles tendonitis she had while training in Korea and being able to play in the tournament, but sad that a wrist fracture rules out Melissa Mellor from playing.

Solveig arrived at about two o’clock, followed by the bus driver to take us from Shanghai Airport to our hotel in Zangjiagang.  For the next four hours we weaved our way through towns of varying characteristics – high density residential blocks, town houses, farms, quaint little towns and modern big towns with well-tended hedges lining up at the middle of the roads. The ‘pit stop’ half way, at about five o’clock, was very welcomed as we have not had lunch; so we spent few minutes buying assortment of little bags of snacks and drinks.

Finally we reached our destination, the hotel where we would be until we move to our ‘official’ world championship hotel on 4 December 2009.  While the room assignments were being arranged, the Team had a photo taken at the hotel’s foyer.    After we have brought our things into our rooms, we had an enjoyable dinner.  There were no organised activities afterwards to allow everyone rest time. It is wonderful to have free internet access so we were able to check emails to get in touch with families and friends back home, especially as the team had been away for more than two weeks by now.

This is all for now.  I hope you keep us company until the close of the tournament.  Thank you 'shieh shieh!'

Violi Calvert
AHF Media & Public Relations

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