Handball is played with both or single hands, between two teams, where a ball is hit with the hand in a walled court with am aim to score goals. The ball is passed or thrown by the hands to score goals. The first Senior Men`s National Handball Championship was held at Rohtak District of Haryana in the year 1972. Haryana won the gold medal and Vidharbha got the silver medal.
History of Handball
Handball in India was played all over the world in ancient days. A depiction of the game was found on the town walls of Athens in 1926. The game- Handball is believed to have been originated since 600 BC. Handball, as played today, was first introduced in 1890 by a German gymnastics master, Konrad Koch. The pioneer countries to play modern handball were those of West Europe. During the 1928 Olympic Games a demonstration handball match was played and in 1931 the International Olympic Committee decided to include handball in the Olympics.
Modern Handball
Today handball in India is played by more than 50 nations all over the globe. In 1946, the International Handball Federation was formed at Copenhagen. In 1926 at Berlin it was an11-a-side outdoor game, but when reintroduced in 1972 at Munich it was an indoor game with seven-a-side, the standard size of team since then.
Handball in 2007
Handball in India gradually became quite a famous sport echoing the true spirit of game in the entire country. It is also regarded as one of the fastest games in the world, and has been able to gain a distinct name in India. Handball was one of the early birds at 4th Military world games in October 2007. The handball team of India played a 30-30-draw match with Turkey in Group A of the nine-team competition at the Saroor Nagar Indoor Stadium.
Methods of Handball
Handball in India is played by dribbling, passing or bouncing the ball as the players run. During the game the team members stop, throw, bounce and strike the ball with different body parts above the knee. Both the team tries to throw the ball in the net of the opponent team to score goals. The playground used in this game is rectangular shape, and is divided by a central line parallel to the goal lines and two goal areas. Of each goal line, the two goal posts are placed at the centre. The two straight posts are kept equally from the corner of playing area, and the bars, strongly erected to the ground and joined by horizontal cross bars, are positioned 3 metres apart and 2 metres high. It is known as goal post which consists of a net where the ball is thrown.
Ball of Handball
The game uses a spherical ball of rubber bladder and the outer cover is of single coloured leather or of a synthetic matter. The weight should be within 425g to 475g and the perimeter needs to be 58cm to 60cm.
Handball Team for Women
Handball in India is not male dominated at all; the game is also played by women. Many women players have made a mark in this game playing at state level of representing India. The women handball was introduced in the year 1976. The handball team of India started well in the first half with 29-11 but lost in the second part. In that game Anita Kumari of India scored notable 13 goals of 21 attempts. A number of measures have been taken to promote the prospect of handball in India.
In 2007 December, 36th National Handball Championship was organised at the Nehru stadium Guwahati, in the state of Assam, where 28 teams from different parts of the country participated and showed their talents. Precisely it can be said that although its getting importance however serious promotional activities needs to be undertaken to make handball in India a true sport of colossal verve.
