From Regional Tournaments to World Championships: The Grueling Qualification Process for Women's Handball at Paris 2024 Olympics
Since the inclusion of women's handball at the Olympics in 1976, the sport has grown in popularity and has become a thrilling fixture at the Olympic Games. Fans around the world eagerly anticipate the women's handball tournament at the Olympics, where they witness some of the best teams in the world compete for the coveted gold medal. With only 12 spots available for the Olympics, the journey to Paris 2024 will be tough and competitive.
The competition will be fierce as only 12 teams will ultimately make it to Paris, with the host country, France, automatically receiving a spot. The journey to Olympic qualification for the women's handball tournament consists of three main pathways: the 2023 World Championships, regional tournaments, and the IHF Women's Olympic Qualification Tournaments. Let's take a closer look at each of these pathways and the teams involved.
The 2023 World Championships, scheduled for November-December 2023, will be the first pathway for teams to qualify for the Paris 2024 Olympics. The winner of the tournament will automatically qualify. With 32 teams competing in the tournament, the competition will be tough, with many teams vying for a chance to represent their country at the Olympics. The participating teams include powerhouses such as Norway, Denmark, and South Korea, as well as up-and-coming teams like Argentina and Cameroon.
Hosts
France
World Championships
In addition to the World Championships, teams can also qualify through regional tournaments. The top team from each region will earn a spot at the Olympics, with the regions being Africa, Americas, Asia, and Europe.
The African Qualification Tournament will take place in October 2023, while the Pan American Games and Asian Qualification Tournament will be held in October and August 2023, respectively. The European Championships, which took place in November 2022, saw Norway take the title and automatically qualify for the Olympics. If they win the World Championships, the next best European team, Denmark, will qualify through this pathway.
Africa
Americas
Asia
Europe
Norway
The final pathway for teams to qualify for the Olympics is through the IHF Women's Olympic Qualification Tournaments, which will take place in April 2024. Twelve teams will compete in three groups, with the top two teams from each group earning a spot at the Olympics.
The teams that will participate in these tournaments will be determined based on their performance in the regional tournaments and the World Championships. The two highest-placed teams from the best and second-best continents at the World Championships, the highest-placed team from the third and fourth-best continents, and the six highest-ranked teams not already qualified will compete in these tournaments.
Tournament 1
Tournament 2
Tournament 3
29 November-17 December 2023. The winner of the 2023 World Women's Handball Championship will qualify for Paris 2024.
Angola
Argentina
Brazil
Cameroon
Chile
China
Congo
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
France
Germany
Hungary
Iran
Japan
Kazakhstan
Montenegro
Netherlands
Norway
Paraguay
Poland
Romania
Senegal
Serbia
Slovenia
South Korea
Spain
Sweden
Ukraine
10-12 October 2023. The winner of the 2023 African Qualification Tournament will qualify for Paris 2024.
27 October-1 November 2023. The winner of the women's handball tournament at the 2023 Pan American Games will qualify for Paris 2024.
Argentina
Brazil
Canda
Chile
Paraguay
Team 6
Team 7
Team 8
17-23 August 2023. The winner of the 2023 Asian Qualification Tournament will qualify for Paris 2024.
China
India
Japan
Kazakhstan
South Korea
Uzbekistan
4-20 November 2022. The winner of the 2022 European Championships, Norway, qualified for Paris 2024. If Norway go on to win the 2023 Women's Handball World Championships, then the next best team from the 2022 European Championships, Denmark, will qualify for Paris 2024 through this pathway.
Norway
8-14 April 2024. After the conclusion of the regional championships, 12 teams will be selected to participate in the 2024 IHF Women's Olympic Qualification Tournaments. The 12 teams will be split into three groups with the top two teams from each group qualifying for Paris 2024. The 12 teams will be selected with the following criteria:
Full details: Qualification System - Games of the XXXIII Olympiad - Handball
