Teams announced for Olympic Test Event

THE line-up for the 2012 Olympic Test event – The London Handball Cup from November 23-27 – has been announced.

Alongside Great Britain women will be a strong international line up of Austria, Angola, China, Poland and Slovakia.

The London Handball Cup is part of the London Prepares Series and takes place in the Handball Arena in Olympic Park. The event will give London 2012 Organising Committee (LOCOG) the chance to test many parts of its operations including the field of play; results, timing and scoring systems and how teams work together.

The competition will see six teams divided into two groups, with teams placed 1st and 2nd in each group progressing to cross-over semi-finals, culminating in a gold/silver medal and bronze matches on the final day of competition.

Group A includes Slovakia, Poland and China and Group B includes Great Britain, Austria and Angola. China and Angola have also qualified to compete at the 2011 World Championships in Brazil, following just a few days after the London Handball Cup.

The schedule is as follows:

Wednesday 23 November 2011
10:30 Slovakia v China
13:00 Great Britain v Angola

Thursday 24 November 2011
10:30 China v Poland
13:00 Angola v Austria

Friday 25 November 2011
10:30 Austria v Great Britain
13:00 Poland v Slovakia

Saturday 26 November 2011 – Semifinals and play off for 5th and 6th place

Sunday 27 November 2011 – Final and Bronze medal match

Tickets for the London Handball Cup will not be on general sale, but local residents, schools, colleges and members of handball clubs are being given the opportunity to attend the test event.

Debbie Jevans, Director of Sport at LOCOG said: “The London Handball Cup will allow us to test our operations prior to the Games, but we are also delighted to be hosting such high quality teams in the brand new Handball Arena. The test event will be competitive and exciting and a great chance for local residents and school children to witness top level Handball, many of them for the first time.”

Paul Goodwin, Chief Executive of the British Handball Association said of the test event: “It is exciting to be part of the first competitive tournament played in the Olympic Handball Arena and we are looking forward to competing against some of the world’s best teams in November.”

The Handball Arena was the third Olympic Park venue to be completed in May 2011 and will have up to 6,500 capacity at Games Time. After the Games, capacity will be increased to accommodate up to 7,500 spectators as it becomes a multi-use venue for community use, athletic training and events.

* The website for the London Handball Cup has just been launched at www.londonpreparesseries.com/handball/index.html

It contains all the information about the competing nations and news in the run-up to the event.